Humble hodge podge dinner.

Happy Lunar New Year, everyone~ I'm in Cheonan right now with the family, busy eating too much holiday food, but I thought I'd take a time-out from the feasting and share some pics from this past weekend. Instead of going out and spending a bunch of money on restaurant food, some friends got together for a small dinner at my place.


I made these baked bean burgers using a 'mash-up' (no pun intended) of different recipes, and just winged it with what I could find in my pantry. I used dried beans that were soaked overnight and boiled with a pinch of baking soda for them to get suuuper soft, but you could ofcourse use canned.

Kidney Bean Burger Patties

3 cups cooked and drained kidney beans
1/2 onion, finely chopped
1/2 green bell pepper, finely chopped
1 carrot, shredded
1/4 cup walnuts, roughly chopped
3 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 tsp cumin
1/2 tsp red pepper flakes
1 tsp dried basil
1 tsp dried parsley
1/4 tsp coriander
1/2 tsp liquid smoke
1 Tbs olive oil
1 tsp salt (or to taste)
1/4 tsp black pepper

1. preheat oven to 400F or 200C.
2. Mash beans with a fork (you could pulse them in a food processor). Add all other ingredients and mix.
3. Lightly oil a baking sheet. Form patties and place on sheet. Bake for 30-35 minutes, until the patties are browned and firm.


I also made the curried carrot dip from Veganomicon. I've been eyeing this recipe for so many years and only just got around to trying it out. Yummy!! I used toasted walnuts instead of sunflower seeds, and only 1 tsp sesame oil instead of 2 tsp of grapeseed. It turned out really great. I especially liked the deep nutty flavor of the toasted walnuts.


Especially tasty when paired with the bean burger patties.


Chris brought vegan bread from Pain de Papa at Garosugil. Love that bakery!


Fresh salad of lettuce, cabbage, and carrots. Can you tell that I was trying to get rid of some carrots? haha.


Yunseo came and cooked some delicious fried rice with button mushrooms, onions, and bell peppers. This was so good, I had to have seconds.


Salad with apple-ginger dressing.


Some fresh kiwi to cleanse the palate. :)


Bunny getting her noms on.


Banana sorbet with dried fruit and chocolate chips for dessert...


more sorbet...


Oh, and we ended up baking some late-night brownies, jus coz. Thick, dense, and very chocolately. Can't think of a better way to end the night-- on a chocolate high.


The end.