Sunday, September 19, 2010

Querencia: My Special Place

Grandma's House

When I walked through the black, squeaking screen door, I saw my cousins running around crazy, my nieces, and nephews playing with each other, and my aunts and uncles laughing and talking with one another. As I threw off my DC shoes, I sprang into the house saying "Hi" to all my family and then ran over to my Grandma and gave her a huge hug and kiss. She asked me, "How was your day today?" I answered with a sigh, "It was alright. I was really tired and feeling a little drowsy, but now that I'm with YOU, my day feels so much more exciting!"
I love being with Grandma, and being at her house.  Grandma's house is comfortable, and warm (literally and emotionally).  Even from when I was a little baby I remember always being excited to be at Grandma's house, being able to go outside into her back yard and lay on the thick, soft green grass which is enclosed by her gray wooden fence.  Or we'd go in her yard and pick up weeds or cut the branches from her trees in her yard with her, and then sit in her little concrete patio with her drinking lemonade, or soda (Grandma loves to drink soda).


But I mostly enjoy staying inside Grandma's wooden beige house.  Grandma's whole house isn't that big, but it always seems to have enough room for everyone.  Grandma's blue kitchen, although small, seems to somehow fit all my aunt's in the kitchen cooking. Grandma's blue kitchen, which was just remodeled by all her kids, is like an L shaped kitchen, with a granite counter top that has speckles of brown, beige, blue, white and black in it.  Grandma's newly remodeled kitchen also has a stainless steel refrigerator (which is taller than everyone in our family) and convection oven that all my Aunt's love cooking and baking in.  Her stainless steel kitchen sink has two sides, and both sides are big enough for my baby brother to bathe in, which is usually where we bathe him when at Grandma's.  And her new cabinets match the brown speckles that are in her counter top.
In Grandma's dining room, her flooring has a pretty cool curved shaped design made out of her brown and white ceramic tiles, her walls are painted beige with white trims, and has 1 table with 6 chairs and 2 counter top stools, which is were where all the men usually sit cracking jokes, talking about sports, and filling the home with laughter.  
In Grandma's living room is her 60" big screen TV (Mom & Dad bought for her), sitting on top of Grandma's beige plush carpet, which all us kids love laying down on, with her 3-piece leather furniture, which is always nice and cool when you touch it because the doors are always open to let the breeze blow through (and because all us kids always run in and out of the house anyways).
But we especially love Grandma's master bedroom, which is also painted beige with white trims, and has a California King Size bed to fit all us kids and Grandma on when she tells us her stories.    And of course Grandma's room has the plush carpet in there as well so us kids will sleep on her soft, pillow top bed, or on her beige plush carpet.  One of the things my sisters and I used to do in Grandma's room is play dress up, because Grandma has a huge closet filled with all her muumuu's, high heels, and pretty blouses, and Grandma would let us put on whatever we wanted, even her jewelry and hair wigs, and we would run around the house with all that on.  Grandma would just laugh when she saw us with those things on.
But like they say, every good thing has to come to an end, and so usually around 1am or 2am everyone starts to leave Grandma's house to go back to their own home.  I'm always that last person to kiss Grandma good bye because I like to hug her extra long, and tell her I love her a lot before we leave.  

Friday, September 10, 2010

Roots & Recipe Draft Essay

My Grandma’s Delicious Ko-Pai!

Walking inside a sweet smelling Ko-Pai house in Pearl City, I see all my 24 brothers and sisters having fun with each other and happy to see everyone again! As I kissed all my aunts, uncles, and cousins hi, I asked one of my cousins, “Where’s Grandma,” they told me, “Oh she is in the kitchen.” As fast as I could, I sped walk without looking like I was running, to the kitchen and I rapidly jumped into my grandma’s warm, loving arms. She told me with a gentle kiss on my forehead, “WOW, you have grown so much Abby! Pretty soon you’re going to be as tall and a chief like grandma.” We both smiled and laughed and continued to communicate among ourselves.
After we all finished eating dinner, we all sat and talked so we could digest our food and have room for dessert! J “YUM!” About around 8:14, grandma got up and walked to the kitchen and started getting out the ingredients for a special surprise dessert for everyone. Once I heard her take out a pot and poured water into the pot, I stood up and made my way to the kitchen. At first, I was eager to see what grandma’s surprise dessert as going to be, but when I found out what she was going to make, I decided to go see how she makes her specialty dessert.
Once I stepped into the kitchen, grandma was already starting to make her specialty dessert called “Ko-Pai!”
My grandma’s way of making Ko-Pai is the best, because she and her sister-my Aunty Chris-puts a special ingredient in the dessert that nobody knows what is in it! J
I remember when my grandma and I would go over to Aunty Chris’s house to have dinner or hang out with her down in Waipahu. Most of the time my aunty would make the Ko-Pai by herself or her and my grandma would help each other to make the Ko-Pai. I also remember that my aunty would make extra Ko-Pai to take home for everyone else that did not go to her house. But now that my aunty is gone and my grandma has arthritis, there are not many of us kids or adults that know how to make Ko-Pai any more.
It was around 8:37, and grandma started to make her Ko-Pai all from her head. The way my grandma made her Ko-Pai was:
  1. Pour Flower (Mix with water)
  2. Make dough hard as a rock
  3. Use a table spoon to scoop the dough out of the bowl, one at a time
  4. Boil hot water in a pot
  5. Dip the scoop of dough into boiled water. One at a time.
  6. When finish dipping dough into boiled water, close pot and wait for 2 minutes
  7. Add Carnation milk (1 whole can)
  8. Add sugar (usually 1 cup) but depends how much you are making/if you just want to add more you can.
  9. When the pot starts to boil with all the ingredients, then your Ko-Pai is finished.
Extras
  1. If you want to make a sauce for the Ko-Pai, then…
  2. Burn the Brown Sugar
  3. Add carnation milk/coconut milk (however much you want)-usually about 2 cups.
Or
  1. Add however much chocolate cocoa
  2. Add milk
  3. Then you can mix either sauces with the Ko-Pai

After grandma was done, she told everyone, “Time for dessert! Come get, enough for everyone!” I was for sure the first one in line to get dessert, because Ko-Pai is my #1 favorite Samoan dish! J While I was eating the hot steaming Ko-Pai, I could think of so many wonderful thoughts, every time I had taken a bite of the Ko-Pai! I was so happy and very excited to see my family, but especially my grandma, also I was happy to be able to eat Ko-Pai that grandma made. As everyone was grinning the Ko-Pai down, grandma said to all her grandchildren and her sons and daughters, “This is what you call a loving Aiga (family in Samoan) bonding!” We all smiled and began to eat again.
Around 12:03 PM, little by little, aunts and uncles and their kids were leaving. We finally started packing up getting ready to leave. As we were leaving, I told grandma, “Thank you so much for the food and everything.” She smiled and said, “You’re very welcome. It’s nice to see everyone again.”
As the door shut behind me, I yelled, “LOVE YOU GRANDMA!” She yelled back the same thing to me.

Thursday, September 9, 2010

Roots and Recipe: Interview and Questions


Interview Questions & Answers
  1. How did you learn how to make it?
  2. How long have you been cooking/been making Ko-Pai?
  3. What memories did you have from making Ko-Pai?
  4. What is Ko-Pai?
  5. What made you think of your own way to make Ko-Pai?
  6. Who started to make Ko-Pai in your family?
  7. Who usually cooks in the family?
  8. How many of your siblings know how to make Ko-Pai?
  9. Why do you like making Ko-Pai?
  10. Have you ever thought of trying to make another culture food, but try to make a food that wasn’t made before? What was it?

Monday, September 6, 2010

Querencia: My Special Place

Think a about a place in your life, past or present, that is very special to you, a place where you could go when you need to be along, when you are feeling down, when you need to think or reflect.


My special place that I could go to when I have to go there or when I need to go there is my Grandma's house in Pearl City right below Chuck E. Cheese. 


The reason why I picked my Grandma's house is because whenever I'm with her and I had a bad day, then my day turns all the way around and becomes the BEST  day ever. Another reason is because I don't see my Grandma as much, so when I see her, then I am SO HAPPY and EXCITED!!


Grandma's House
My Grandma & Me at her house
 

Friday, September 3, 2010

Roots and Recipes BrainStorm

1. What food will you be describing?
-I will be describing the Samoan dessert called Ko-Pai !!


2. What are some special memories it has for you?
-Some of the memories it has for me is that, when my Aunty (Grandma's sister) could not make the Ko-Pai, we would go to my Grandma's in Waianae to make it and have a family gathering.


3. What are some sensory details that will help bring the food “to life” for your readers?
-soft
-chewy
-yummy
-delicious
-makes your taste buds sizzle!


4. Who will you be interviewing about your food?
-I will be interviewing my Grandma who I love very much...