In the meantime--New sink and Akasaka Sushi

We've been having issues with our kitchen sink.  The guy who installed it for us didn't do a good job;  his plumbing skill (or lack thereof) was proven the very next day it was installed.  Yes, it leaked.  And it's been that way ever since, for three whole years.  The leaky sink was gross, unsanitary, and stunk up the area underneath it.  It was about time we did something about the sink.  So I called up our friend, who's a contractor, and asked him to replace the sink entirely, plus a ton of other repairs and projects that needed to be done around the house.

 

So he showed up with a shiny, brand new sink and installed it in about three hours.  He told us not to use the sink for a few hours to allow the adhesive to completely dry out. 

Well then, what shall we do for lunch?  We decided to take this opportunity to eat at a sushi restaurant in our neighborhood.

 

Akasaka sushi restaurant.  It was one of those restaurants that's been open for who-knows-how-long in our neighborhood that we never bothered to try--until fairly recently.

It's a small place, probably 40 people capacity.

We ordered their Orange Blossom roll and the Super Dragon Roll.  Their lunch special is the "buy a roll, get one free", so we got a really good deal.



 Orange Blossom Roll.  Smoked salmon and cucumber on the inside, white fish and more salmon on the outside.  Topped with tobiko and served with sriracha, sweet-spicy teriyaki sauce, and spicy mayo. The spicy sauces went really well with the rich, mellow flavor of the salmon.

 Super Dragon Roll.  Shrimp tempura on the inside, unagi and avocado on the outside, topped with black, orange, and wasabi tobiko.  It was good, but I couldn't figure out what was so super-dragon-y about it.

Baked mussels.  Topped with spicy mayo and tobiko.  Good flavor, but it was slightly overcooked and boderline too chewy.

After we came back from our tasty sushi lunch, we went home to admire the brand new sink.  Our old one was only 7" deep, but the new one is 9", which provided plently of dish-scrubbing space without overflowing all over the counter.  And it didn't leak. What a relief!

In the meantime...Irish Cream pound cake

I'm kinda-sorta enjoying being out of work...for now.  My hand still gets stiff and swollen in the morning, despite the three-week rest.  But of course I didn't want to rest too much--I mean, what if I get rusty or lose my touch?

 

So I've been baking macarons every now and then, with good results.  To this day, I wonder if Pierre's bakery (where I used to work...) ever got someone to make the macarons.  As far as I know, I was the only one who was able to make them.

But today, there was one issue that needed to be resolved...a half-bottle of Irish Cream sitting in the fridge.  I had used it to make Irish Cream cheesecake for a dinner few months ago, and being a major lightweight, I haven't touched it since.  If I can't drink it, what should I do with it?  (...Other than giving it away, but c'mon...giving someone half a bottle of liquor is just so not classy)

 

Bake with it of course.  I've always wanted to make a pound cake loaded with booze, and this was the perfect opportunity.

 

So I took a basic buttermilk poundcake recipe and substituted the buttermilk with a mixture of Irish cream, amaretto, and bourbon.  I also added instant coffee to the mix.  In other words...

 

Irish Cream + Amaretto + Coffee equals a mixed drink known as "Orgasm".



 

...Yes, this is my "Orgasm" pound cake.  Not too sweet and uber moist, this cake starts out with coffee flavor and finishes with a boozy punch.  Paired with Earl Grey ice cream, it was indeed, orgasmic.