One Pomegranate. Singular.

Two years ago, I had about half a dozen pomegranates on my tree. Last year, they were only about an inch or two in size. :( So I was really excited this year to see about three that were almost 3 inches in diameter.

Only, when I cut it open, that's what I saw above. The seeds never even formed! Have you ever seen the like before?

Still, I was hopeful since there was one decent-sized pomegranate left on the tree.

Mama's Lu Dumpling House - Monterey Park

For a while a few years ago, Right Way to Eat kept trying to convince me to try other dumpling houses, but I wasn't willing to give up my favorite -- Luscious Dumplings, Inc. - San Gabriel. Well, I've certainly tried other dumpling houses, I just refused to relinquish the title of "favorite" to any other. :)

After going back and forth on various places, we decided to eat at Mama's Lu Dumpling House in Monterey Park. This was partly because it's owned by the daughter of the original mama Lu herself of Dean Sin World - Monterey Park fame, and partly because I was curious about the restaurant that replaced Heavy Noodling, which I liked more for its name than its knife-cut noodles.

Chinese Sauteed Lettuce with Oyster Sauce

I bought a bag with three heads of romaine lettuce that I intended to eat with my homemade Caesar Salad Dressing, but I was feeling too lazy to run to the store to buy anchovies and Parmesan cheese. Plus, there was all that mincing and chopping.

I've always much preferred to eat my vegetables via soups rather than salads, but it was late August, the dog days of summer, and I was in the midst of working 12 days in a row. Exhausted! Hungry!

I needed vegetables and I needed them in minutes. So recalling that I wanted to try making the cooked lettuce I ate at Sea Harbour Seafood Restaurant - Rosemead and, more recently, at Mama's Lu Dumpling House - Monterey Park, I decided to treat lettuce like I treat most vegetables -- I sauteed it with just a bit of oyster sauce.

Oh my!

It was so good that I made it again a few nights later.

Cooked, lettuce has a lovely sweetness that's enhanced with oyster sauce. Just saute it until wilted so the lettuce retains its crispness. Perfect as a complement to many dishes, but I ate this as a meal with rice and salmon.