From a young age I knew food was an important part of my life. As a southerner, food is a delicious part of everyday life and usually meant good conversations or exciting TV shows. As I neared the end of high school I began cooking more, taking cooking classes and even competing in a group cooking competition! While we didn't win, this confidence in the kitchen got me ready for adulthood. After high school I moved to Okinawa, Japan where my taste buds were blown away by the amazing cuisines and flavors. Before moving overseas, I had never tried foods like sushi, curry or even ramen. These were staple foods in my Okinawan diet and I loved every bit of it.
While I was living in Okinawa, I attended community college online. This meant that technically I skipped the going off to college and gaining the "freshman 15". In reality I ended up gaining a "Japan 20" as I like to look back and call it. At the end of the day it wasn't about the foods I was eating but rather my body changing into adulthood from adolescence.
My journey to Japan not only opened up my taste buds when eating out but my home life was brand new, living with my dad for the first time. This experience pushed my to learn new recipes and find some staple dishes that I enjoyed making. A house favorite were my fish stick tacos which included tortillas, cheese, fish sticks, lettuce, a giant scoop of sour cream and some fresh lime juice. After making these for a couple of years I can no longer eat them.
It wouldn't be a foodie blog if I didn't share my favorite sweet treat. Beni Imo. That's right. It sounds like the name of a famous person or cartoon character but it's what the Japanese call their purple sweet potatoes and then they make an ice cream out of it and wow is it incredible. I wonder what our orange sweet potatoes would taste like as an ice cream? Anyway, Blue Seal is the ice cream shop that serves it as a soft serve and not only is it delicious, it's incredibly photogenic! I probably spent more time photographing the ice cream than I did eating it.
