About this blog

“Rice and Pasta.” That’s what I tell people when they ask what we eat at home.  My husband grew up in Shanghai, China, where the men are known to be great cooks.  His Chinese dishes incorporate non-Chinese ingredients like pine nuts and zucchini, and his pasta dishes usually involve something stir-fried. 

The food we enjoy is sort of a great metaphor for how our family brings together both cultures:  American and Chinese.  We speak English at home, but our family “lingo” includes a smattering of Chinese words.  Our kids watch Thomas and Elmo, but love Chinese cartoon heroes like the Monkey King.  We celebrate Christmas and New Years, and also Chinese holidays like Lunar New Year and Mid-Autumn Festival.  We incorporate a little bit of this and a little bit of that, and try not to worry too much about what we’re leaving out. 

But bringing together two cultures in one family is not as easy as it sounds.  In fact, some days it seems nearly impossible. So here is a blog about my family’s love for each other and for food (can’t leave this one out!) as we walk through life with one foot in American culture and the other in Chinese culture (and sometimes both feet in one or the other).