merry christmas part 3: i love the people in my life. and the internet

Decking out my work computer.

Wallpaper via How About Orange

Excuse me as I blubber a bit, but this year I've been hyper-aware of all the blessings in my life and with the holiday season upon us, my emotions are in overdrive.

Obviously I don't want to equate love to material goods, but let's be honest - when you receive presents, big or small, it's exciting. To know that someone is even thinking about you is humbling enough, but when they make the effort to show it through some token, it kind of makes me teary.

And so I just needed to express again how grateful I am for my family, friends, pledge sisters, and co-workers for being involved in my life, encouraging my interests, and making me feel as if I add some value to our shared spheres. These are things I have learned not to take for granted and I continue to work hard to demonstrate the same degree of generosity and selflessness. 

Hugs. Ok moving on.

I read a lot of design and craft blogs, but one of my favorites is A Subtle Revelry. It's a treasure trove of gorgeous photographs and unique DIY ideas and I look forward to Victoria's posts and pins every day. During this holiday season, she has also hosted a plethora of giveaways from her sponsors, all of which I have entered because you can't win if you don't try!

With Lady Luck on my side, I'm so happy to say that I am the winner of her recent gift card giveaway for My Sweet Muffin! I'm gifting the entire thing to my niece and nephew so they (and their parents) can pick out what they want themselves, but if it was up to me, I would currently be stressing over what to pick from these:

Organic Fabric Small Suitcase - Dwell Transportation Backpack - Jack the Dog Toddler Backpack

How freakin' adorable would it be to see a child running around with one of these?

Thanks A Subtle Revelry and My Sweet Muffin!!

makin' some kimchi

The Korean culinary adventures continue with my first attempts at making kimchi.

Radish Kimchi via Maangchi

Too bad it was hella salty. And the longer I let it sit in the fridge, the saltier it became! I kept trying to mix it with my dinners for the following week, hoping the other food would neutralize some of the sodium, but no success. I was just about ready to give into my frustration and toss it out, but in my last ditch effort to find a solution, I stumbled upon this list of 1001 ways to use vinegar. Apparently one remedy for over-salted dishes is a mixture of white distilled vinegar and sugar; given the fact that I really couldn't make this dish any worse, I decided to give it a try.

And it worked!! Sort of. It's still saltier than I would like it to be, but it's now edible. Another huge dollop of honey probably would make it perfect. I'm kind of unreasonably excited about this mainly because this is my first time just jumping in and actually trying to troubleshoot a culinary failure. When it comes to cooking, I prefer to strictly follow recipes (and always get very anxious when they would end with "season to taste"). I know I don't have a very refined palate and am never really sure that what tastes good to me tastes good to someone else, so I find the guidance a recipe provides very reassuring.

Although I still wouldn't feed this kimchi to someone, it makes me happy to know that I made something that tasted bad (to me) taste ok (to me) without relying on some recipe to give me exact proportions of vinegar to sugar. 

merry christmas: part two

I was feeling particularly festive today, so I decided to deck out my desktop with some holiday cheer

wallpaper via mon carnet

Also I got my second $1 BoltBus ticket! This time it was for my trip back home for Christmas. Thanks Bolt for the early present.

song of the day: sungha jung - a whiter shade of pale

On my soundtrack for days I'm feeling mellow and/or melancholy, this song is at the top of the list.

A Whiter Shade of Pale   Sungha Jung - A Whiter Shade of Pale



And if you've never heard of Sungha Jung, I highly recommend you visit his YouTube page and be prepared to be blown away.

He makes me cry. I think I would actually break down if I saw him perform in person.

merry christmas!

In the spirit of the holidays, I decided I wanted a tree. But I didn't want to pay for it. Doh. Lucky for me, there are enough thrifty people/small apartment dwellers that HP felt compelled to create this free printout, which was then picked up on Apartment Therapy and propelled through the Pinterest world. I know it's a little (ok a lot) ghetto, but do I get points for hanging ornaments? They were leftovers from a failed project, but I think they still look okay...

Finding a place to hang this picture up was kind of a ridiculous experience. It's only four feet tall, so putting it near the ground would make it basically unnoticeable. After a lot of pacing around the room, I eventually decided my best option was to have it floating above my chair. That corner is already super awkward, so I guess this tree can just highlight that.

oh hey look, real art

You know how out there in the interwebs there are blogs and Facebook pages offering giveaways of gorgeous, expensive objects? And you enter all of them knowing that really, it's all for nothing? I mean, seriously, especially when you have only one chance to enter, what are the odds?

Luck was clearly on my side this time around, because I ACTUALLY won something. And not just something that would be nice to have because it's free, but a gorgeous something that I'm over the moon about owning:

via {COZAMIA}

It was love at first sight when I spotted this print on decor8. It's girly with an edge and is rocking my favorite pattern and color combination of the moment. I also won Jonathan Adler's book on chic accessorizing with my print. Thanks again, {COZAMIA}, my home (and library) is a prettier place thanks to you :)

other favorites from her shop

kimchi chigae

Foods that I love in this world: string beans, tofu and pickled things. Of pickled things, kimchi is probably my favorite. It's simultaneously spicy, sweet, and sour and I could totally eat it on it's own for a snack. (Ok I admit, I actually have. I know that's gross, don't judge me too much.)

Tonight I was actually feeling quite lazy and was going to just cook ramen for dinner, but as I was rummaging for a bowl, I spotted the clay pot I bought several months ago and suddenly felt inspired to use it for kimchi chigae. I had the kimchi, the silken tofu, and some scallions to get rid of (seriously, those things wilt so freakin' fast), so why not. It's got 2 of my 3 favorite things!

Recipe via No Recipes

I used pork loin instead of pork belly because I read somewhere before that although pork loin doesn't have as much fat, it's just as tasty.

before and after

This is actually how I eat dinner every night. My mom would be so mad to know that I eat in front of my computer, but to be fair, it serves as my TV. Yes, I'm drinking orange juice. And yes, I do, in fact, have a fobby little bowl that I sometimes use for my rice.

My clay pot is kind of fun too, no? It almost made me feel like I was eating at a legitimate restaurant. All I need is a little metal rice bowl with a lid.

On a complete side note, if you ever wonder why I tend to take my food shots from the same angles and locations, it's not because I think it looks particularly artsy that way but rather it's because my kitchen lights are more like spotlights and those are the only angles and locations where I do not cast a shadow in front of me. I guess I also think those angles are a little artsy.

beef stew

One of the random things a friend passed down to me as he moved cross-country was a giant slow-cooker. I was reluctant to take it at first because it was heavy and had to be carried on a bus, but it seemed like such a shame to throw it out otherwise. Now I can say that it was totally worth the sore arms and bruises on my thighs, because this thing is freakin' awesome.

Beef stew is strangely one of my dad's favorite things to make. I say it's strange because he doesn't actually really like to eat it (he's not a fan of red meat). However I always enjoy it, and since I had been wanting to redeem myself from my last beef failure and had a lot of deteriorating veggies in my fridge, I decided that it was time to bust out the slow-cooker and take my own stab at this dish.

Lessons learned:

• You cannot prep/cut potatoes and leave them in the fridge for more than 2 days. Mold will grow and you'll be very sad as you throw out 2 whole potatoes and all the carrots that you happened to put in the same container.
• 4.5 hours on high heat is not enough to cook 2 lbs of beef. The meat was still pink when the timer went off, but as it was 12:30am at this point, I just took it out and cooked it on the stove-top the following day.
• In case you didn't know, you can slow cook radishes.

Gah I'm so in love. I'm not very good at cooking meat and the slow-cooker just makes it all so easy. I can now totally see why some people live off of slow-cooked dinners.

rice cake soup

Despite it being unseasonably warm for November, I'm in the mood for soups and stews. In an effort to get Operation Cook for SY back on track, I figured I would give this dish a try. 

I wish I could say that I made this fairly simple soup with a lot of finesse and grace, but since we're all friends here, I'll admit that this took me about half an hour longer than it should've, mainly because I kept going back to my laptop to watch the instructional video from my favorite Korean cook, Maangchi.

She's so freakin' cute! I hope she picks the music for all her videos herself, because sometimes the song choices are hilarious.

tada

Originally I was going to forgo the garnish because it looked too fancy for me, but since the beef had to boil for half an hour,  I figured I would be ambitious and go for it.

At first everything started out okay - this was my first time separating the yolk from the whites and so I was super proud of myself for pulling it off. Thank goodness one full egg was to go in to the "whites" bowl because that meant there was room for 1 mistake. Which I made.

But then I had to fry it, which made me nervous because I have acknowledged the fact that I'm just not very good at flipping over any half-cooked liquid-y mass in one piece.

Yup. So that happened. 

But then as I watched Maangchi's video for the 6th time, I realized something looked a little off on my end. That's when I realized that rather than using the yolk bowl, I accidentally fried the whites+1 yolk mix. Womp womp. 

My second attempt with the correct mixture turned out much better:

As for the seaweed, I realized that she crushed it in a bag because if you try to do it with your bare hands, about 75% of it will be wasted because it'll be stuck to your hand and impossible to take off.

Also I forgot that my bottle of sesame oil doesn't have a mechanism to allow the oil to slowly drip out, so I accidentally poured in probably about 2 tbs too much. It still tasted ok though...

Don't worry S, by the time you come out here, I'll have this one figured out!

little victories

I did it! I cooked a bonafide meal for 4 people and as long as they weren't lying to me, I would say it was a success.

No attempts to take artistic photos for this, as I didn't want to keep my guests waiting while I snapped away.

Tonight's menu consisted of

1. Fried dumplings (My first attempt! Usually I just boil them.)
2. Soba noodles with onions and carrots. I also made a peanut sauce, which I wasn't personally a fan of but my friends ate it anyways. <3 them.
3. Slow cooked chicken. It was good! The chicken was not quite as juicy as I had hoped, but it was still pretty good for not having been marinated beforehand.
4. Roasted asparagus. Ok I didn't actually make this. Thanks DC and DS!

To top off the meal, we made mimosas with the champagne my friends brought over. We had to have them in mugs because I don't own any other type of drinkware. Always classy, that I am.

In true Asian style, the night ended with fruit. Mmm red grapes.

Yay this was fun. I hope no one feels ill tomorrow.

in an ideal world...

my home would have interiors like these.

via delikatissen

via pinterest

via Design Attractor

via busybeingfabulous

I've been trying to define my aesthetic with some difficulty - I find myself swooning over minimalistic industrial spaces and then gushing over cluttered, granny-chic rooms two seconds later. In the end though, I think I just want my living space to be warm. I want to walk in after a long day and feel like I'm getting a giant, plushy, comforting yet energizing ambient hug. To put it another way, I want to be this cat and my home to be this bear.

I'm certain this feeling can be achieved if I acquire an excessively high pile rug like the one below. It looks like freakin' snow that is perfect because it's not cold or wet. Must. Have.

via Style at Home

can you stay for dinner?

On my To Do list: Slow-Cooked Korean Chicken

photo via can you stay for dinner

One Friday afternoon, I came across this blog during my lunch hour...and did not stop reading until well into the evening. I felt like I stumbled upon the diary of my long-lost best friend and needed to catch up on her life. Her entries are hilarious yet thoughtful, and her recipes look DELICIOUS. Also she is ridiculously pretty.

Having lost 165 lbs (starting at almost 300 lbs) through moderate exercise and mindful eating, the author, Andie, often talks about how important food is to her and her love for cooking. Not wanting to restrict herself to a less-than-satisfying diet, she's been working over the years on recipes that work for her and because of this, I feel like you can palpably sense the enthusiasm oozing out of each entry as she details the cooking process and the end product. I wish I came across her blog before I went to that mindful eating course with CL, because I really would've been much less judgmental about the whole thing. I'll take this as a lesson to be more open-minded in the future.

If you have the time, you seriously should visit can you stay for dinner? and just peruse for a while. Also I just realized that she is the editor of Foodista, which produced a cookbook that I randomly bought at a Borders closeout sale. Clearly Andie and I were meant to be.

red bean mochi cake

...is not as good as regular mochi cake.

I also made pumpkin mochi cake, which was equally underwhelming. Perhaps I didn't cook either batch properly, but I think I prefer the very light - almost bland - taste of regular mochi. Just sugar and stickiness is apparently all I need to be happy.

recipe envelopes

Created out of book pages (more on that to come). For now I've been printing out very simple (and short!) recipes on index cards, but I might have to rethink the system as I move on to more complicated recipes. The flowers were originally hung just to dry, but they are so fragile that now I'm afraid to move them and risk them falling pieces. I guess they look nice as is, right?

Had to purchase those corkboards (wah) for about $2 each, bringing the grand total project costs to $4.

local eye candy

Some of my favorite pieces at a local gallery opening:

1. Paper vases by Hiroshi Kajimoto
2. lace platters by Pasabahce
3. Crochet Table by Marcel Wanders - constructed of cotton and epoxy, it was ridiculously stiff!
4. nail table by Peter Sandback
5. drum table by Peter Sandback

I was a huge fan of both Sandback tables, particularly the nail table. The red oak was baked to caramelize the sugars in the wood, thus creating that deep brown color. Then about 3000 aluminum nails were drummed in, sawed even, and sanded flush with the table to create that gorgeous surface pattern.

A new dream of mine is to have a house with a giant garage and/or yard and an endless supply of power tools so that I too can try my hand at projects like these. Until then, I shall admire from afar.

i got (more) furniture

OMG I'm so excited to share this new acquisition.

Things have been pretty calm on the interior editing front. I'm tinkering with a few handmade decorative items and still popping by flea markets to look for little pieces of flair, but in general, my place is pretty set, especially with regards to the major pieces.

But then this weekend happened.

A friend, MC, came to visit and I talked her into perusing a nearby flea market with me before we went shopping at "normal" places. As we wandered around the blocks looking at the generally underwhelming selection, we came upon an antique furniture store that had set out some of its wares on the sidewalk. I have been to this store before and had every intention of just walking on by, but something caught my eye mid-way down the perpendicular street. I don't know what was originally so captivating to me - I think maybe it was the color? - but MC and I made our way to investigate further and came across these wonderful wonderful chairs.

Chillin on the street, because that's what I do.

With their gorgeous herringbone pattern and light, springy bamboo construction, it was kind of love at first sight. I poked around for a price tag but couldn't find anything; MC posited that perhaps they were free and we should run off with them right away. Oh, how I wish that was the case.

Instead they were $125 for the set - supposedly never used and just unearthed from the warehouse two weeks ago. And so the internal debate commences. Do I need chairs? What am I going to do with four chairs when I only really need two? Am I seriously considering buying furniture right now? I guess the folding chairs I own are a little ghetto... but seriously am I going to buy chairs today?? But I love them..

Eventually I decided that I had to have them and forced MC to go in and negotiate the price down for me. He pretty easily agreed to go to $110 with free delivery, but when we pressed for $100, he said that would only be possible if I moved them myself. As I always am looking to save the extra money, I immediately agreed and sealed the deal. The hilarious thing is that MC had to carry two of them for me, and for those that know MC, they know that she is not a fan of manual labor. Also she was totally my guest who caught an 8am Saturday bus to come see me, and pretty much the first thing I do is make her move furniture. Whatever, I bought her lunch :P

Despite the price tag, I think these chairs were totally worth it, especially after a random lady stopped us on the street to gush about how GORGEOUS these were and how much she LOVED them. We even missed a traffic light as we listened to her excited babble. Obviously though, I can't judge her for her enthusiasm - look how pretty this pattern is!

In general, I think they class up my dining area and remedy the "poor student" look I kind of had going on, even if only slightly. I know my mom is going to kill me for bringing in what she would call clutter, but whatevssss! 

kitchen failures continue

No images are necessary to visually remember this moment, but today I attempted to use up aging vegetables (carrots, onions, celery, tofu, jalapenos) and some leftover ddukbokki by stir-frying it all together.

Ended up creating possibly the worst dish ever, with the spiciness of the ddukbokki sauce and the jalapeno seeds creating such heat that the dish was essentially inedible. On top of that, I didn't use gloves while removing some of the seeds from the jalapenos, consequently causing my right eye a lot of grief when I later tried to take out my contacts. Those jalapenos are no joke. Count your blessings that you do not depend on me to feed you.

cooking bonanza

Nothing fancy but still nommable.

1. Pickled radish salad
2. Sio ramen and bok choy (did you know that boiled bok choy makes delicious broth??)
3. Ddukbokki

I have a confession to make. I've eaten several versions of ddukbokki over the past few months because they eat this all the time in the k-dramas and it's supposed to be one of Korea's most popular street foods but... I don't think I like it very much. I think it's a little too heavy for me. I hope my future Korean actor husband doesn't hold this against me.

---- Update 10.21.11 ----

I consumed the leftover ddukbokki last night and it was actually really good. I think the flavors of the ingredients were able to gel better together with time, thus creating a sweeter dish that still retained a slight kick. Nomz.

look ma, i made this

I have a love-hate relationship with Anthropologie. I hate their excessive prices, but their stores are always so pretty and well-stocked with baubles that I can't help but return every week, just to look around. Lucky for me, every once in a while, Anthro sometimes indulges cheapskates like me by hosting awesome open events where attendees can walk away with free swag.

This week saw the kick-off of a two-week design festival in the city, and Anthropologie played host to several events. The first was a lecture from their big-shot buyer, Keith Johnson, who shared stories about his travels around the globe while hunting for goods to bring back to the store. It was really interesting and entertaining, but he pretty much convinced me that I should never shop at Anthropologie because all their best items come from flea markets anyways.

The second event I attended was a jewelry making workshop with one of their local designers, Lenora Dame, and it was SO. MUCH. FUN. Seriously, I wish I had more liberal parents who indulged my artistic interests when I was a child. Alas, crafting will remain a hobby for now.

The final product, all supplies provided by Lenora Dame and Anthropologie

We were provided everything - the cuffs, fabric and "bling" (the designer's term, not mine). After Lenora and her team showed us how to wrap the fabric neatly, we were given 45 minutes to construct our collages of bling. This adorable older couple a few seats away from me was having so much fun, it was kind of ridic. I hope someday I marry a guy who will attend these kind of things with me and be as enthusiastic as this man was. 

Obviously the best part of the whole event was that it was free. Thanks Anthro!

american swedish heritage museum: 17 designers

A couple weekends ago I moseyed my way down to the American Swedish Heritage Museum to check out their exhibit featuring the works of these 17 female designers.

It was a small exhibit and I'm secretly glad I didn't shell out $8 for admission (open houses ftw!), but how great are these chairs?! I would love to have the grey one in my future grown-up home.

mochi cake

In my quest to become a Korean chef extraordinare, I decided that I was going to skip over the entrees and go right to dessert. Enter: mochi cake. Not really Korean, but sticky rice love can break boundaries that way.

Recipe via Week of Menus

It was easy and freakin' delicious. Officially my new favorite dessert/snack/pseudomeal.

Next I'm going to make red bean mochi cake. And then blueberry mochi cake. And then I will find some other delicious substance and throw that in too because I am obsessed.

----------------------------------------------------------------

Recipe 
(Makes one 9X13 pan, or 24 squares)
1 lb box of mochiko flour (3 cups equivalent) 
2 1/2 cups of sugar
2 teaspoons of baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 13.5 oz cans of coconut milk
5 large eggs
1/2 stick of butter (1/4 cup of butter) melted and slightly cooled
1 teaspoon of vanilla extract

1. Preheat oven to 350. Grease a 9X13 baking pan.
2. In a large mixing bowl, whisk together mochiko flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt.
3. In a separate bowl or large measuring cup (4 cup capacity), beat eggs, then add coconut milk, melted butter and vanilla extract.
4. Carefully pour the wet ingredients over the mochiko flour mixture and whisk until mixture is smooth and uniform in texture.
5. Pour batter into greased 9X13 pan. Carefully smooth out the top. 
6. Bake for 90 minutes, until top is golden brown and the cake begins to pull away from the sides of the pan.
7. Allow cake to cool for about 30 minutes on a rack, and then carefully flip it out and cut into 24 squares, or the size of your choice. Can store mochi cake for three days, covered.

kate voegele - enough for always

An instant pick-me-up that I can't get enough of.

major fail.

So far my home cooked meals have all involved the following things: grains, noodles, vegetables and chicken. Wanting to expand my horizons a bit, I spontaneously bought a pound of beef chunks for dinner. The results... were not so hot.

With the stove going and the oil popping, I found myself wondering how I was going to transfer the beef to the pan without splattering blood and oil all over the place. Ended up using a fork to throw in each piece individually. Also ended up still splattering blood and oil all over the place.

I then threw the veggies in - way too early apparently, but they were the least of my problems. At this point I was freaking out because the majority of the beef looked overcooked, but 2 pieces didn't look quite done. Not wanting to ruin the meat any further, I turned off the stove and plucked out the odd-ball pieces for closer inspection.

Not okay.

I then proceeded to cut every single chunk in half to make sure they were cooked all the way through. Just as I suspected, most of them were overcooked, so now I'm confused. How does this happen? What did I do wrong? These two pieces weren't much larger than the others and I don't think I was that slow in putting all the food in the pan.

As a minor consolation, the rest tasted fine. 

I think. 

I'm afraid to feed other people.

new goal: multi-course dinner

Over the past year, I've come to learn that I am a very goal-oriented person. Without defined goals (and deadlines), I can't seem to muster the motivation to do much of anything. This past summer, the main driving force behind my crafting frenzy was the fact that I was going to host about 8 girls in my apartment in mid-August and I wanted my place to be pretty for them.

Now that that event has come and gone, I've been in a funk that I can't get out of. A little depressed and very listless, I turned to my trusty Korean dramas to pass the time. One cooking drama later, I'm happy to say I have something new to work on.

I have a friend, SY - S for short (xoxo B...jk I didn't just do that.)

S is going to visit me (because I say so) and when she does, I'm going to prepare a full Korean meal for her. Starters, entrees, dessert. Hold me to it, lady! I'm now declaring my deadline (aka your time of arrival) to be the first weekend of November (Homecoming).

That gives me a month to basically learn how to cook. Eek. But, my plan of attack is to go through the courses sequentially and as the appetizers/banchan are my favorite part of any Korean meal, I'm super pumped for this. S, this might be a warning that my dinner will be heavy on the apps and light on everything else.

Now presenting side dish attempt 1:

Recipe via Maangchi

Yes, I know all I did was fry tofu...but there is beauty in the simplicity, right?

Yay me, aja aja fighting ^.^

poppin

via the obsessive imagist

How cute is this?? Poppin is an office supply vendor with the sweetest packaging I have ever seen. This would totally make my day if I came unexpectedly came across this.

i heart japchae

Usually I try to keep it to one post a week, but I'm so excited that I couldn't wait.

I love Korean food. There are certain Taiwanese dishes I hold near and dear to my heart, but honestly, if I was told I had 1 week to live and could only eat one particular cuisine in my final days, it would be Korean.

Japchae is one of my favorite dishes, but the results of my past attempts to make it have been underwhelming. I had kind of given up, but the studly lead actor in the kdrama Gourmet inspired me to try again. [The story was basically about 2 brothers competing to inherit their father's restaurant, but given the amount of screen time the cooking and food had, one could easily mistake it for a Korean Food Network show.]

Before and after. 

The end product was freakin' delicious. I've struggled with the noodles in the past, but they were just to my liking this time around, making me a very happy person.

Another thing that makes me happy: this man. Love him.

Kim Rae Won, your smile gives me butterflies.

home improvements

Blah. I haven't been inspired to try anything new lately (that gallery wall was a huge energy drain!), so I took a bit of time over the weekend to improve on some things.

Sewed my fabric rug together so now it's held together by real thread instead of packing tape. I figure now I can also use it as a picnic blanket :D

Added some weight to the rug and my kitchen mat by attaching pieces of the rug formerly covering my parents' basement. Now I can actually step on these things without slipping. And they're squishy. +1 to me.

an unedited picture like this would've been impossible before

Had the lightbulbs replaced in my living area. The previous bulbs were quite small and inadequately lit the room. I didn't realize how much a room is improved when you can actually see things.

And no picture is really necessary for this, but I had my landlord fix my toilet so now I have a fancy new handle and I no longer have to stand around for 5 minutes making sure the water stops. Always a good thing.

I'm actually pretty excited about all these small updates - it's a good feeling when things are "just right". :)