4 Years. With Pork Meatball Banh Mi and a Gender Reveal.

Murdo and I got married four years ago today, on a private lake in Michigan. After we said our vows, we celebrated in a big white tent with 150 of our closest friends and family.

Today, where that big white tent once stood, there is a house. A house that Murdo's parents built -- are still building -- into a new Michigan home, where summer weekends in Michigan as we once knew them will change from long days and nights of drinking on the deck, drinking on the boat, drinking around the fire, to early mornings with kiddos running around, barefoot and sticky-faced, ready for a day of swimming and wiffle ball and hot dogs and chasing fireflies and making s'mores. It will take some adjusting, to say the least, but just like we knew four years ago that the step we were taking was so, so right, we know that this next step -- this leap, really -- is right, too.

In the eating-for-two department, I'm happy to report that my taste for vegetables has returned (and with it, Murdo's complaints about the smell of steamed broccoli), I no longer crave the feel of my mouth burning from spice after every bite of food, and I now have enough energy to plan meals, go grocery shopping and cook dinner again. Woohoo! Let's eat pork meatball sandwiches!

Specifically, pork meatball banh mi sandwiches. I had my first banh mi sandwich a few years ago, from a Vietnamese restaurant in Wicker Park that no longer exists. Since then, I have been on the hunt for a good banh mi sandwich in the suburbs. I found a place close by that's good but not great. Then I found this recipe that's really good, that I've made twice, the leftovers quickly polished off. The last go around I realized that these meatballs would freeze beautifully (because I foresee the "Freezer Friendly" meal becoming my best friend very soon), and if you're not in the mood for a sandwich, I've found that tossing all the innards with some rice and a healthy squirt of sriracha makes an excellent lunch. 

Also: IT'S A BOY.* 

Pork Meatball Bahn Mi Sandwiches (from Bon Appetit)

For me, what makes the banh mi is the combination of flavorful Asian-style meat with the crunchy, quick-pickled vegetables, sprigs of fresh cilantro and creamy, spicy sriracha mayo. I say "Asian-style" meat because I think any kind of salty meat with Asian flavors will work. I've been meaning to try making it with these pork skewers, and I bet even Korean BBQ would be good (like bulgogi or galbi). 

These pork meatballs, though. They took me about an hour to prepare, cook and assemble into sandwiches, which is a little longer than I like to be making dinner on a weeknight, but they're simple and delicious enough that I've added this recipe to the regular rotation. Even better would be making them ahead of time and keeping them in the fridge or freezer until ready to eat.  

Sriracha Mayo
2/3 cup mayonnaise
1 tablespoon sriracha

Stir together mayo and sriracha, and add more sriracha to your taste. Set aside in the fridge.

Quick Pickled Vegetables
2 cups carrots, cut into thin matchsticks(I used bagged pre-shredded carrots from Trader Joe's)
2 cups radishes, cut into thin matchsticks
1/4 cup unseasoned rice vinegar
1/4 cup sugar
1 teaspoon salt

Combine ingredients in a medium bowl, and let stand at room temperature for an hour, tossing occasionally. 

Meatballs
1 lb ground pork
1/4 cup fresh basil, finely chopped
4 garlic cloves, smashed and minced
3 green onions, finely chopped
1 tablespoon fish sauce
1 tablespoon sriracha
1 tablespoon sugar
2 teaspoons cornstarch
salt and pepper

Line a rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper. Using your hands, gently mix all of the ingredients in a bowl. Use a tablespoon to scoop meat, and roll the mixture into about 1-inch meatballs. Arrange on baking sheet. I ended up with about 30 meatballs. If you're not cooking them right away, cover and chill until ready to cook.

Sandwiches
1 tablespoon Asian sesame oil
1 French baguette, cut into 6-inch long pieces (or however long you want your sandwich to be)
Thinly sliced jalapeno
Fresh cilantro sprigs

Heat the sesame oil in a large skillet or cast iron skillet over medium high heat. In batches (don't overcrowd!), add meatballs and, turning often, saute until brown on all sides and completely cooked through, about 15 minutes. I used a meat thermometer to make sure they were an internal temperature of 160 F. Transfer cooked meatballs to a clean plate and repeat with remaining meatballs, adding more oil to skillet if needed. 

Cut each baguette piece horizontally, either completely in half or left with a hinge, whichever you prefer. Pull out enough bread to leave a 1/2-inch thick shell, or to a thickness you want. (Pulling out the bread is a genius move that I just discovered! More room for innards!) 

Spread sriracha mayo on the bread, then fill your sandwich with meatballs (I used 4-5), jalapenos, pickled veggies and cilantro. Add an extra squirt of sriracha for even more kick. 

Now eat! Baby Boy is hungry! :)

*Because we're impatient, we paid out-of-pocket to find out the sex of the baby at one of those 3D ultrasound places that will tell you baby's sex as early as 15 weeks. So while most expecting parents find out at their 20-week ultrasound at the doctor's office, we found out at 16. As of today, I'm 16 weeks and 6 days, And this little guy just keeps on growing!