Coconut Milk, Coconut Powder, and Coco Rico

Coconut milk and coconut juice are important ingredients in several Vietnamese and Thai recipes for curries or braises. Although I do sometimes cook with coconut flakes, that's mostly for dessert so it's not a vital pantry staple for me. The three products and brands that are essentials in my kitchen are Chaokoh coconut milk, Chao Thai Brand coconut cream powder, and Coco Rico, coconut-flavored carbonated soda.




I like Chaokoh because it tastes creamiest and is reasonably priced, anywhere between 59 cents to 79 cents a can. I've tried a few other brands and just didn't think they tasted as creamy. Also, Chaokoh is very popular so it may sometimes be found in American grocery stores. I'd love to try the boxes of fresh coconut milk I also see on the shelf, but they cost several dollars for the equivalent of the 79 cents can of Chaokoh.

Thai Purple - Alhambra

I can't believe it's been a decade since I moved to Southern California. My move coincided with the opening of two places -- the J. Paul Getty Center and Museum and Thai Purple. Not that I'm putting them both in the same category. Just sayin' the two events happened around the same time, so they're linked in my memory.

This was before the movie theater opened across the street so there was little reason to notice the front of the restaurant if you drove along Garfield Avenue. Notice that sign on the far left corner? Pad thai Tuesdays for $3.99 all day.



Anyway, so before the movie theater opened across the way, I found and always entered the restaurant from the back. I don't even remember who I was with when we first noticed the grand opening sign and decided to try it. But entering through the back always made me feel like I was in the "know." Remember that scene in Goodfellas, where Ray Liotta entered that club through the back, through the kitchen? Kinda like that. Except you don't have to grease any palms, unless you want to tip the free valet guys in the parking lot.

The back entrance faces the parking lot on 1st Street.

Uppsala - Sweden: Birthplace of Celsius

We couldn't linger long amongst the burial mounds of Gamla Uppsala (old Uppsala) since we still had to hit up "new" Uppsala. If you liked the rune stones at Sigtuna, you're in for another treat.

I revert back to good old Rick Steves' Scandinavia again for information. Scandinavia's first university was founded in Uppsala in 1477. Famous graduates included Carl Linnaeus and Anders Celsius. The university's library houses the Silver Bible (Codex Argenteus), so named because it was written in silver ink in the 6th century. It contains a 4th century translation of the Bible into the Gothic language.

Below is Uppsala Cathedral, which contains the tomb of King Gustav Vasa. The two spires are 400 feet tall.