Monthly Archives: June 2016

IT WON’T BE LONG NOW…

I am so excited to come to Las Vegas for my upcoming talk, dessert reception, and book signing on July 21st at the JCC of Southern Nevada. For reservations/information on this kick-off event, contact Elizabeth Bricker at 702-794-0090 or email Elizabeth at ebricker@jccsn.org or register here.Screen Shot 2016-06-23 at 7.35.30 PM

This is the kick-off event for the exciting 2016 World Championship Mah Jongg Tournament being held at the Westgate Hotel in Las Vegas from July 22nd – July 24th. The pre-event publicity has been wonderful and I hope all of you coming to the Mah Jongg World Championship will arrive on July 21st and join me at the “J” at 4:30pm.

The World Championship Tournament – where champions come to play – will be held on July 22-24, 2016 and will offer the largest prize purse in American Mah Jongg history with a minimum of $5,000 first place prize…don’t miss this opportunity to take part in Mah Jongg history! Screen Shot 2016-06-23 at 7.40.30 PM

To register for the Mah Jongg World Championship, follow this link…Screen Shot 2016-06-23 at 7.50.36 PMScreen Shot 2016-06-23 at 7.54.01 PM

And, on Saturday, July 23rd, enjoy the tournament’s Happy Hour from 5:30 – 6:30pm, which will offer 2 drinks per person and where I will be signing the book, Mah Jongg: The Art of the Game from 5:30 – 6:30pm. Screen Shot 2016-06-23 at 7.49.35 PMScreen Shot 2016-06-23 at 7.49.57 PMScreen Shot 2016-06-23 at 7.30.03 PM

CAN YOU RELATE TO THIS?

Thanks to Esther Bergman Liberman’s great sense of humor, here’s a “Mah Jongg flow chart.” Why do I suspect we all can relate to this?!Flow Chart

A MAH JONGG STITCH-IN…

You might remember when I did a posting  this past April about a Mah Jongg tea towel from Barbara Howard’s wonderful tea towel blog. Screen Shot 2016-06-16 at 8.35.30 PMSince then I have discovered that there are oodles and oodles of Mah Jongg tea towels, many to be found on Zazzle or Etsy. Our very creative friend Kat has recently found some fabulous tea towels:Screen Shot 2016-06-13 at 4.32.33 PMShe wrote: “An east and south wind tile, counting sticks and dice, hand embroidered on linen mahjong napkins. My guess is they are from the 1920s. There were various magazines at the time that carried patterns for mahjong tablecloths and napkins (I have several of the magazines with patterns, know some of you do too). The other items are vintage Chinese hand applique items.”

A close-up of the wind and the counting stick:Screen Shot 2016-06-13 at 4.32.56 PM

Kat also found a fabulous lantern bag as she traveled about:Screen Shot 2016-06-13 at 4.33.06 PMand wrote about it: “That lantern bag with the junk is pretty amazing, it is large, about 18″.”

And here are some examples of Mah Jongg tea towels that you can find for sale out there on the Internet:Screen Shot 2016-06-16 at 8.34.11 PM Screen Shot 2016-06-16 at 8.33.15 PM Screen Shot 2016-06-16 at 8.32.49 PM Screen Shot 2016-06-16 at 8.32.12 PM Screen Shot 2016-06-16 at 8.31.33 PM

If you have any other Mah Jongg tea towels, send your photos to me and I will post them. 

IT’S THAT TIME AGAIN!

Once again, it’s time for Riderwood, the Erickson Living retirement community in Silver Spring, Maryland, to host its 9th Annual Mah Jongg Tournament on Thursday, August 11th!
RWV Mah Jongg Tourney3-August 15Open to the public, the five-round competition will be governed in accordance with rules established by the National Mah Jongg League.  More than 148 Mah Jongg enthusiasts from the mid-Atlantic participated in the 2015 tourney!!!

Registration will take place at 9:00am with tournament play beginning at 9:30am.  The event will occur in Maryland Hall, located in the Montgomery Station Clubhouse of Riderwood (3120 Gracefield Road, Silver Spring, MD 20904).

The event is a fundraiser for the Riderwood Benevolent Care Fund.

A payment of $50 includes registration, a delicious lunch and prizes; $25 of the fee is tax deductible.  Space is limited with an entry deadline of Friday, July 22nd.

Checks can be made payable to “Riderwood Benevolent Care Fund” and mailed to the Riderwood Philanthropy Department, 3110 Gracefield Road, Silver Spring, MD 20904.

For more information, please contact Barbara Breit at 301-586-8152 or Annette Graubart at 301-960-9734.

RWV Mah Jongg Tourney1-August 15Riderwood resident Barbara Breit is pictured following her welcome remarks during the 2015 Mah Jongg Tournament at the Erickson Living retirement community.RWV Mah Jongg Tourney4-August 15Prizes and goodie bags from the 2015 Mah Jongg tournament.

About Riderwood:  Riderwood is one of nineteen continuing care retirement communities managed by Erickson Living.  Located in Silver Spring, Maryland, the scenic 120-acre campus is home to more than 2,500 residents.  Riderwood is the ideal greater Washington, D.C. retirement destination offering a true sense of community, convenience beyond compare and a sensible financial structure.

HAPPY (MAH JONGG) FLAG DAY!!!

From the very creative mind – and hand – of our friend Kat…Happy Flag Day!FLAG_oA closer look and an explanation:11713926_403336039869651_13309991555360472_oA Mah Jongg – or should I say, a Kat – rendition of a Betsy Ross flag made from the casein blue backs of tiles, red casein tile faces, faces from bone and bamboo tiles and, finally, the stars are bone wind disc indicators. Thanks to Kat for this very special treat!

MAH JONGG WEDNESDAY RECIPES

As promised, here are the recipes from our most recent and very fun Mah Jongg Wednesday.

First, from my favorite chef, the Barefoot Contessa’s Lemon Drop Cocktails:

LEMON DROP COCKTAIL
Serves 6

2 cups frozen vodka
1/2 cup superfine sugar
1/2 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice
1 lemon, thinly sliced

Combine the vodka, lemon juice, and sugar and pour into a cocktail shaker with ice. Pour into martini glasses and garnish with lemon.Attachment

For our lunch I made a chopped salad inspired by Joe Trama, the executive chef at Grace’s Marketplace.

YUMMY CHOPPED SALAD
Serves 6

Romaine lettuce
Garbanzo beans
Cherry tomatoes
Cucumber
Kalamata olives (buy the ones without pits)
Feta cheese
Red onion (optional – I don’t use this ingredient)
2 Chicken breasts

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Wash and dry the chicken breasts and then rub them with olive oil. Sprinkle with Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper. Place them on a parchment paper-lined cookie sheet and cook for 35 – 40 minutes.

Once the chicken breasts have cooled enough to handle, remove the skin and dice the breasts into bite-sized pieces.IMG_1563Shred the romaine lettuce and place in a large bowl. Add the Garbanzo beans and pitted Kalamata olives.IMG_1557IMG_1560Cut the cherry tomatoes in half, length-wise.IMG_1559Cut the cucumber into small diced pieces.IMG_1561If you decide to add red onion, dice it up into small pieces and add to the bowl.

Break up the feta cheese. IMG_1562Add the chicken pieces and dress with a balsamic dressing. IMG_1564I don’t season this dressing as the olives and the feta are very salty. I put salt and pepper on the table and let everyone add them to their own taste.

YUM!!!IMG_1567Dessert was a variation of a Barefoot Contessa creation. The night before the luncheon I made her fabulous Raspberry Sauce:

BAREFOOT CONTESSA’S RASPBERRY SAUCE

1 half-pint package fresh raspberries 
                                                                                                     1/3 cup granulated sugar 
                                                                                                                          1/4 cup water 
                                                                                                                                                 1 cup (12 ounces) seedless raspberry jam (if you can’t find seedless raspberry jam, pour the sauce through a sieve before chilling)                                                                                                         1 tablespoon Framboise liqueur

Bring to a boil, lower the heat, and simmer for 4 minutes.
Pour the cooked raspberries, the jam, and Framboise into the bowl of a food processor fitted with the steel blade and process until smooth.
Chill.

When it was time for dessert I scooped Talenti Tahitian Vanilla Bean gelato into a bowl, added raspberries and blueberries, and then topped it all with that fabulous raspberry sauce. I usually serve some biscotti with this dessert but today we had those amazing Kristin Marin Mah Jongg cookies. Plus, S1 brought some AMAZING Dulce de Leche cookies – also known as Alfajores – and S2 brought some delicious miniature Madeleines.IMG_1569IMG_1571