Baby Bok Choy Rosette

I chopped the bottom off a baby bok choy, and ta da!

Bok choy is good stuff. It's the Chinese equivalent of cabbage, although I would describe it as more similar to kale. I happened across a ton of it at a good price at the Asian Supermarket in Albany. So I picked it up because I had been wanting to experiment. My mother-in-law and I had quite an adventure discovering the wonders of an authentic Asian market. (Separate post on that to come.)

Eventually I ended up braising it on the stove top with minced onion, garlic, chicken drippings, and a splash of red wine vinegar. It turned out tasty. Plus I saved the the bottoms I chopped off to throw in a batch of chicken stock.

I'm learning that there are uses for what a lot of people write off as trash. An example would be the water used to boil asparagus, which is in season now. I save that little bit of green water to put in the chicken stock as well. There's flavor and goodness in there!

Practical Wisdom

I find that my new neighbors are full of everyday wisdom.

Recently I marveled at the speed my husband went through a bar of Zest. Zoop! Gone in a week. I thought it was because the shower head keeps dripping onto the shower organizer that hangs below. So we rearranged, but even though trickle was dodged the soap still vanished in no time.

I was told by several folks that bar soap should be stored in the open air. This promotes drying and hardening which extends the shower life of your soap.

So unwrap those bars, and save the soap!