Alien's Day Out: Vegan in Seoul, South Korea

A tale of two birthday cakes

2012-02-07T15:51:00.002+09:00

It's been almost an entire week since my last post! Yikes. I have a bunch of food photos that are waiting to be blogged about, but it may take a while to get around to them, especially since the next week or so is looking to be pretty busy with Valentine's Day orders. BTW, the last day for ordering the 'Be My Valentine' Gift box and truffles was originally today, but I've extended it til Thursday, Feb 9. :)

Anyway, part of last weekend was spent making two birthday cakes:

Exhibit A and B.

The first was for Chris, who is a long-time friend, fellow vegan, and chocolate-lover. To ease his pain of getting older (I like to affectionately call him 'ajusshi' even though he's far from it), I made a three-layer chocolate cake using the recipe from 'Joy of Vegan Baking' by Colleen Patrick Goudreau. I then spread chocolate mousse topping from VCTOTW in between the layers and all around the outside. And even though it's a bit early in the year for strawberries, they're beginning to appear at the market, so I grabbed a pack to prettify the cakes.

The completed cake, before going in a cake box.

And here it is, lit up like a christmas tree. Happy Birthday Chris!

Here's what it looked like on the inside. Everything tasted awesome, if I may say so myself. The cake was moist, very chocolatey, and the strawberries added nice bursts of juicy freshness. And as far as I could tell, everyone really enjoyed it. The tofu chocolate mousse layers could've been thicker and maybe a little sweeter, but all in all, it turned out delicious.

slice #1...

and slice #2. Couldn't resist having seconds. :P

And as per Chris' request, we also had homemade vegan burritos and guac for dinner. For the main filling, we stir-fried rice, potatoes, onions, kidney beans, button mushrooms, broccoli, and fresh cilantro.

We also consumed about a bucketful of guac.... T'was an incredible sight to see.

Everything wrapped up into a toasted wheat tortilla. You can get vegan tortillas at the foreign food mart, costco, or major department stores.

And now moving onto Cake #2! This was for T & S who are twin sisters and have been ordering cookies from me ever since I first started the bake shop. They have been so great that when T asked if I would make them a vegan birthday cake, I was more than happy to. :)

She asked for a pretty simple chocolate layer cake with butter-cream frosting, but then I felt that it would look too plain, so I ended up decorating the top with chocolate-covered strawberries and some flat chocolate buttons that I made just from melting dark chocolate.Happy Birthday T&S! :)

Too bad I couldn't cut into the cake to take a cross-section photo. I don't think their birthday would've been very "happy" if they got a cake with one slice already cut out of it.

Boxed up and ready for pick-up. :)

Oh, and when I met up with T, she was so sweet and gave me a bag of goodies from Veggie Holic bakery. 1 loaf of raspberry bread and 1 chocolate chip muffin! My favorite items from Veggie Holic. :) Ahh, I love my customers...

Pure Snow

2012-02-01T09:53:00.006+09:00

Whee, check out the snowfall from yesterday! The first major snowfall of this winter. There's nothing quite like a blanket of fluffy snow to coverup some of the dank ugliness of the city. Although, pretty soon, it will all turn to grimy, sooty slush...

I went for a walk and I was going faster than all the cars that were crawling at snails pace~ So glad I wasn't stuck in traffic.

And this morning, Bunny went for a walk around the patio. See her footprints? Apparently she's not as afraid of snow as I anticipated.

She could almost blend in if it weren't for her little brown spots.

That's her "pet me~" face.

Stay warm, and be careful when walking outside! :)

Accidentally Vegan: Ivy Crackers

2012-01-31T14:24:00.001+09:00

Snacked on some Korean Ivy crackers today, which are animal-free as well as sugar-free.

Don't you love finding packaged foods that are unintentionally vegan? I probably spend too much time at grocery stores scrutinizing nutrition labels. Even if I already know that something isn't vegan, sometimes I'll check the ingredients list again, just to see whether the company recently updated the recipe. Such optimism.....

Mmm, not bad. Not bad at all. I shall be enjoying the rest sprinkled over some veggie soup for dinner. :)

'Be My Valentine' Gift Box

2012-01-30T10:00:00.002+09:00

Hi Friends in Korea!

With the first month of 2012 already coming to a close, that means that Valentine's Day is right around the corner. Unfortunately, most valentine sweets and cakes here are laced with dairy milk, butter and eggs, so us vegans in Korea might feel a little left out when everyone else around us gets boxes of chocolates from secret admirers.

To remedy this situation, I decided to get creative and put together a sexy, chocolatey gift box available for order on my bake shop site. If anyone is looking to express their love in the form of cruelty-free, handmade treats, this could be your answer. Even if you don't have a significant other, you can always get a box for your single gal pals, or even just for yourself~ Hey, sometimes we need to say 'I love you' to ourselves too. :)

Each gift box will include:

1 small vanilla-chocolate marble cake
4 vegan hazelnut truffles
4 raspberry choco pinwheel cookies
4 black forest cookies
6 snappy chocolate-dipped hearts

Marble cake; the perfect metaphor for two becoming one. :)

Soft, rich chocolate cookies with chewy, tart, dried cherries.

I'm especially excited about these melt-in-your-mouth hazelnut truffles, which are essentially a vegan (and gluten-free!) version of ferrero rochers. You can also order these separately by the dozen, however, please note that these will only be available during this Valentine's season.

Raspberry-flavored chocolate pinwheel cookies with chewy pieces of cranberry throughout.

A cookie-version of the iconic Valentine's conversation sweets. These are crunchy chocolate hearts, imprinted with a love message and dipped in more chocolate.

Please submit and complete your gift box order by the end of Tuesday, Feb 7 (Extended to Thursday, Feb 9). Packages will begin shipping on Feb 9. Feel free to indicate whether you would prefer to receive your package before or after the weekend and I will try to accommodate your request. All items will be wrapped in cello bags for freshness, carefully packaged in a brown gift box, and then tied up in red ribbon. Personalized gift messages can also be included at no extra charge.

For prices, shipping info, and more photos, please check the bake shop site. Thank you for your interest!

Lunar New Year food recap

2012-01-26T19:13:00.002+09:00

Here are some eats from my Lunar New Year hols in Cheonan.

Someone gifted us with a purdy box set of Korean traditional snacks. Korea's version of a box of chocolates. Thank goodness it wasn't a box of spam.

Toast for breakfast with fresh fruit, carrots, and avocado!

Avocado is so ridiculously expensive in Korea, these little morsels were indeed precious. I remember back in Ivory Coast, there were several avocado trees around my boarding school compound and we'd climb them and pluck fresh avocados! We'd just slice then open, sprinkle with some salt and pepper and spoon the creamy goodness it into our mouths. Yum.

My mom and I also got busy putting together homemade vegan mandu. Recipe here. Over several meals, the mandu got cooked in various dishes, using all sorts of methods, such as...

steaming....

... boiling in 두부전골 (type of tofu soup, except the tofu is hidden underneath all the veggies and mandu)...

... fried euuup...

... and last but not least, cooked in a big pot of vegan tteok-guk, which is absolutely essential on Lunar New Years. Mandu tteok-guk all the wayy!

And here are some pics of the banch' lineup, made by either my mom or aunt:

fresh sea vegetable salad

peanut jorim

spinach banchan

kimchi

sauteed white radish banchan and sea vegetable salad

bean sprout banchan

Finally, to add a little 'western' flair to the holiday, for one meal, we roasted up some veggies including pumpkin, potatoes, onions, red bell peppers, enoki mushrooms, and carrots. Everything got tossed together with olive oil, agave syrup, balsamic vinegar, minced garlic, dijon mustard, dried basil, oregano, parsley, and salt and pepper. The best part about roasting veggies is you can just leave it to cook in the oven while you focus on cooking the other dishes, and in the end, you have an amazingly flavorful, colorful dish. So good~

Aiights. That was a super speedy recap. Hope everyone had a good holiday~~ Ta ta!

Humble hodge podge dinner.

2012-01-24T09:37:00.003+09:00

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.

Vegan Bake Sale Fundraiser for BTR-GSR

2012-01-23T10:54:00.003+09:00

(photo credit)

Hello people in Korea!
My friend Raphaelle is organizing a vegan bake sale fundraiser to benefit the Born to Run Global Sighthound Rescue Organization. They are working hard to rescue these beautiful dogs (borzois, greyhounds, deerhounds, etc) from Korean shelters and find them forever-homes, usually overseas because it's harder to find homes for these larger breeds here. These dogs are simply stunning and it is so sad to see photos of them rejected and broken. Please browse through their website and read about their story and how the organization was founded.

If you would like to donate some vegan goodies, please contact the event planner through the FB page. I plan on contributing a few goodies too! Anyway, I will let you read the details below, copied from the FB event page. Hope you can make it~~

When: Sunday, Jan. 29th from 11 AM to 2:30 PM

Where: Camarata Music Studio in Haebangcheon. It is across from Jacoby's burgers, just next to the Family Mart. Subway station Noksapyeong, exit 2, or blue bus 143, 401 or 406. See detailed directions at the bottom of the post.

What you can do:
- donate some home made vegan baked goods. Gluten free option would be appreciated too! So far we expect to have cookies, muffins, cupcakes, bars cinnamon rolls, banana bread...

- come and enjoy some vegan baked goods! We will also have some light lunch options for sale, such as soup or curry. Just show up on Sun. 29th before 2:30 pm.

- advertise the event to your friends who might be interested: dog lovers, vegans, people with eggs or dairy allergies, people who enjoy cake...

Where the money goes: Born to Run Global Sighthound Rescue is a grassroots dog rescue network specializing in borzois, greyhounds, deerhounds and similar breeds all over Korea. These large dogs are particularly difficult to re-home here.

Born to Run typically needs funds for vet care, crates, collars and leashes, and quarantine/immigration requirements when the dogs are adopted outside of Korea. All the board members are volunteers, the money directly helps the dogs.

Here are their website and facebook page. Have a look at the pretty dog pictures!
http://www.globalsighthoundrescue.com/
https://www.facebook.com/GlobalSighthoundRescue

If you can bake for us, please message [Raphaelle] now with a list of what you plan on contributing. Thank you!

Directions
Subway: Take the #6 (brown) line to Noksapyeong. Take exit 2 and walk along the concrete wall of the army base. At the intersection keep following the wall until you get to Kimchi jars. Walk up this road on the left side past Phillies restaurant until you come to a Family Mart. Just before the Family mart is a big wooden door opening to a basement. Delicious cake and friendly folks should be found at the bottom.

Bus: Take blue bus 143, 401 or 406. Exit the bus at “Yongsan Hanshin Apartments”, the stop between "Haebangcheon" and "Namsan tunnel 3". Walk on the left side of the road when looking at Namsan. The walking path will get separated from the main road by a sound wall. The path will make a left turn, putting you on the main Haebangcheon street next to Indigo’s restaurant. Go right, up Haebangcheon street, until you see a Family Mart on the left side of the road. Just before the Family mart is a big wooden door opening to a basement. Delicious cake and friendly folks should be found at the bottom.

Facebook Event Page

My basic oatmeal recipe

2012-01-19T15:45:00.004+09:00

I've gotten some questions recently asking how I make my oatmeal so I figured it would be good to do an oatmeal post. If you've been following this blog for a while, you'll know that one of my all-time fave breakfasts is a hot bowl of creamy oats. I can never go too long without it. It's healthy, comforting, creamy, nutty, wholesome, rustic... and there's something about the ritual of cooking it that makes me happy. One might think that it's too much hassle to make a hot breakfast over a stove before work, but really, it usually only takes around 7 minutes. 10 minutes tops. It's also really filling- I eat breakfast around 8am and it sustains me til lunch time. So anyway, here's a general idea of what I do.

First, for those in Korea, if you're curious, I use this brand. Comida Oatmeal (꼬미다 오트밀). I order this stuff from this home baking site at 500g for 3,500won, but you can get it on Gmarket. It's reasonably priced compared to imported Quaker oats. I also tried using another Korean brand of oatmeal that is sold at Bangsan baking market, but I really didn't like the texture and it tasted old and rancid. Yuuuuck. So I have been a loyal fan of this Comida stuff.

It's a little different from Quaker-style rolled oats which are usually very flat and whole. These are slightly flattened and roughly broken into pieces, so you get a mix of creamy and chewy texture. I love it.

Anyway, onto the recipe. Hm.... I usually just estimate measurements, so in order to share a proper recipe I tried to measure things out for ya.

2 cups room temp water
1/3 cup unsweetened soy milk
1/3 cup rolled/broken oats
1 Tbs chia seeds
1/2 Tbs ground flax seeds

Optional add-ins:
fruit (1/2 chopped apple or 1/2 mashed banana)
sweetener: 1 Tbs molasses (or pinch of stevia)
spice: 1/4 tsp cinnamon
nuts, dried fruit, nut butter, pumpkin puree, cacao nibs...

In a pot over medium-high heat, begin to boil about 2 cup of room temperature water. Toss in the oats, chia seeds, flax seeds, soy milk, and mix. It's important to do this before the water is hot because then everything will just clump together. Bring it all to a boil, gradually stirring every now and then. While it is heating up, I always add a piece of fruit such as chopped apples or a mashed banana. I love including mashed banana because it adds to the creaminess. As it starts to boil, it will thicken and begin to bubble. Reduce heat to low and continue to cook for a few more minutes, or until the apples (or whatever fruit you're using) are cooked through and the oats are soft. At this point, check the thickness and adjust to your preferences. Sometimes I want to keep it thick and goopey, but when I want a more watery oatmeal, I'll add an extra 1/2 cup of water. And now it's time for the best part: the add-ins, sweetener, and toppings. I always change it up by throwing in different dried fruits and/or nuts, nut butter, more ground flax seeds, smashed ginger snap cookies, or pumpkin puree. This is your chance to get creative!

Here are some oatmeal concoctions I've enjoyed~ If you need more inspiration, check out Kath's blog!

oatmeal with toasted coconut, tropical fruit, and raisins

carrot cake oatmeal

pumpkin oatmeal with ground flaxseeds, PB, and molasses on top.

Peach oatmeal with pb, ground flax seeds and molasses.

sunflower seeds & molasses

Ginger snap cookie, peanut butter, and Heritage bran flakes

''sujunggwa" oatmeal: dried persimmons and cinnamon

Land of Morning Calm Oats: persimmon, jujube chips, sesame seeds.

Vegan strawberry fruit loops, sunflower seeds, PB, and cinnamon.

Happy Breakfasts!

Sukkara Cafe, Revisited

2012-01-18T17:25:00.000+09:00

I can't even remember when I last went to Sakkura Cafe in Hongdae, but it was several years ago... I remember they were semi-vegan friendly in that they had soy lattes and a vegan chickpea salad option, but not much other than that. The first time I went, I got super excited over their tofu cheesecake which I assumed was vegan but then later found out that it contained egg. :( I think that scarred me for a while. haha.

Anyway, I finally decided to revisit them (with some friends in tow) and was thrilled to see they have a new and improved menu, which is infinitely more vegan-friendly and very detailed about ingredients. They now clearly specify whether a dish has animal products and allow diners to customize dishes according to their dietary preferences/allergies.

Creamy vegetable soup, fresh salad with chickpeas, thin slices of natural yeast bread and a dollop of tofu spread (10,000 won).

The soup was quite filling with bits of potato and carrots. It definitely had a unique mild flavor which was beany yet potatoey at the same time. The chickpea salad was also quite lovely.

However the best thing on the plate was this herbed tofu spread which tasted like cream cheese.

So good.

Bread and vegetable soup set with homemade fig jam (6,500 won). I reckon this would be perfect for anyone just looking for a small snack.

Their fig jam was delicious. especially when paired with the vegan cream cheese from the first dish!

Olive oil vegetable pasta without the bacon that usually comes with it (10,000won).

We also ordered a soy latte. You can't tell from this photo, but underneath the foam, the soy milk was curdled due to the acidity of the coffee. I've had soy lattes there before and this was never a problem, but for some reason, this time, their latte was bland and unappetizing. :(

Finally, for dessert we shared a slice of their 'Apple with steamed grain cake'. I was expecting it to be like an apple pie, but it was definitely something else. The base 'crust' was made from chewy sticky rice, and then there was a thin layer of clementine preserves, a thicker layer of sweet red bean paste, and topped with cooked apples.

Although it was a bit lacking in flavor, it was still pretty good and definitely a healthier dessert. A unique, creative interpretation of an apple tart.

In the end, it was quite a tasty, healthy, "interesting" meal~ I really love their revamped menu and that they are so accommodating to vegans now. The cafe vibes are still as homey, chill and hipster as it was several years ago, so if you haven't been to Sukkara yet, I recommend making a visit. It's one of the few independent cafes in Hongdae that have endured all the steep competition over the years, and it's still going strong so props to them!

Website
Address, 1F Sanullim bldg. 327-9 Seogyo-dong Mapo-gu Seoul.
Tel, 02-334-5919.
Open, 11:00 am. Close, 12:00 am (L.O 11:00 pm).
Holiday, 3rd week Monday

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Kkokkal Cone Corn Snacks

2012-01-16T11:31:00.001+09:00

These are some old-school snacks that all Koreans grow up eating and have nostalgic feelings about. But one of these is not like the others. Can you guess which one?

Okay, so I probably gave it away in the post title, but if you guessed the Kkokkal cones, you're right. And wanna know why? Cuz they're the only vegan ones of the lot! Seriously, I could go on and on about all my childhood favorite Korean snacks that are I no longer indulge in. Nongshim shrimp crackers (새우깡), onion ring snacks (양파링), choco pies, and pepero sticks were and still are some iconic ones that I honestly do miss. Sometimes I wish I could just be a kid again, munching away at a whole bag of Nongshim onion rings, carefully nibbling out gaps in the rings and then sticking them on my earlobes and pretending they are earrings. Don't try to tell me you didn't play with your food too!

Luckily, I don't have to give all my childhood snacks up because these don't contain any animal products. Sometimes I'm out and the only place to get food is a hole-in-the-wall convenience store, and if I'm super hungry, I will snack on a bag. Sure, it's not the healthiest thing to eat, but at least they're vegan.

In my opinion, there is only one way to eat these.... stick them on your fingers and eat one by one:

Rawr~~ claws comin' at you.

Play time with the Bunz

2012-01-14T13:28:00.000+09:00

Random eats so far in 2012

2012-01-13T18:53:00.002+09:00

Here are some random eats from the past week or so.

I've been craving bibimbab and banchan these days.

Gosh, Korean food is quite simply the best.

Experimental ooey gooey pecan-choc chip shortbread bars.

I've also been baking and tasting new goodies to add to the bake shop.

Last week I visited Cheonan and got to enjoy some of my mom's danpatjook (sweet red bean porridge). A delicious traditional winter-time Korean treat.

My mom also made her own ddeok.

Lemon poppyseed muffin. I think I'm obsessed with anything lemony these days. Clean, bright, and zesty. Is it just me or does lemon taste like happiness?

Here's some of last week's homemade bread with pumpkin butter and bananas with apple jam on top.

Once that loaf ended, I made another one, this time with lots of poppyseeds, oats, and flax seeds sprinkled over it.

Last but not least, breakfast this morning was a glorious green monster smoothie. The first of the year. I finally unpacked my blender after months of leaving it buried in moving boxes because I really miss making morning smoothies! This one included 1 ripe banana, 1 cup unsweetened soy milk, 1 Tbs chia seeds, 1 handful spinach, a few ice cubes, and a squeeze of lemon. Seriously, green smoothies always make me feel so good about myself. Sometimes it's these little nourishing acts that set yourself up for a good day.

Happy Friday & have a good weekend!

Bamboo Shoots to Save Tuna

2012-01-12T15:18:00.004+09:00

Lately, I've been trying to get out of my long-time food rut and get experimental in the kitchen with main meals. I love testing new baking recipes, but I don't get as excited when it comes to actual meals and savory dishes. However, in an attempt to sample new foods and change things up, I decided to try using a new-to-me ingredient: canned bamboo shoots. I've had bamboo shoots before in dishes like thai coconut curry, but I'd never actually bought any and cooked it myself, let alone the canned version.

Korean canned bamboo shoot.

I was expecting to see julienned slices of bamboo, so when I opened the can and saw this, I was like wtf?

Looks scary, like chopped off alien tentacles...! I wasn't expecting it to look like this.

And so I started rinsing it off (it had some white residue on it), and found that the texture was fibrous and 'piece-y,' similar to fish. So then a light bulb went off in my head.... let's make vegan tuna salad! I'm sure using fresh bamboo (or even the vacuum-packed kind) would've been far superior, but if you want to try this out, here's what I did:

Vegan Bamboo Shoots 'Tuna' Salad

1/4 block of medium organic tofu, blended (or use vegan mayo)
1 Tbs dwenjang or miso paste
1 tsp garlic powder
1 can bamboo shoot, roughly chopped
1/4 medium onion, finely chopped
2 stalks celery, finely chopped
2-3 dill pickles, finely chopped
2 sheets of nori, finely torn
salt & pepper to taste
dash of smoked chipotle pepper (optional)

1. Blend the tofu, dwenjang paste, and garlic powder with a hand immersion blender til smooth.
2. If using canned bamboo, thoroughly rinse and drain the shoots.
3. Chop into rough chunks and add to the tofu "mayo," along with all the other veggies, nori pieces, and spices. Season with salt & pepper to taste.
4. Assemble sandwich and enjoy.

Here's the bamboo, chopped up. I'm sure you could make a chick'n salad too, by replacing the nori sheets with some fresh parsley or dill.

The end result was this creamy-crunchy salad.

I spooned some onto a ciabatta bun (from October bakery) with lettuce and a squeeze of mustard.

Enjoyed with some radish kimchi (I'm Korean afterall), and an apple.

Healthy, low fat, vegan tuna salad sandwich.

It's a bit hard to describe the texture of the bamboo. It wasn't exactly chewy.... more... crispy? The flavor was also interesting (in a good way), somewhere between artichokes, hearts of palm, and corn? Bah, I dunno... you'll just have to try it out for yourself. :)

Experimental sandwich mission: accomplished.

T.O.F.U. Magazine, based in Daegu!

2012-01-11T15:29:00.004+09:00

The other day I was blog-hopping and came across this awesome zine about vegan food and living called T.O.F.U Magazine. And then amazingly later that same day, I got an email from Ryan Patey (editor in chief and the main brain behind the magazine) saying that he follows my blog and very recently moved from Canada to Daegu, South Korea. So now we can proudly claim that T.O.F.U is currently based in this little land of morning calm. How awesome is that. And although the content is not specifically related to Korea, he mentioned that it will probably include more Korean-related topics/recipes in the future.

Anyway, just wanted to pass this nugget of info along~ I had a look through it and there are tons of engaging articles and food for thought, as well as a number of tempting vegan recipes to try out. You can download a copy at this link by contributing as much or little as you see fit. Yes, you can get it for free! But I reckon it would be awesome to support this veg publication in any small way. :)

Here's some info about their winter issue:

In an effort to become more inclusive of the whole vegan community, the magazine is focusing on the diversity within the movement. Hence, Issue six covers the intersection of veganism with forms of oppression such as racism and homophobia, as well as other relatively controversial topics surrounding a plant-based lifestyle.

Highlights include interviews with Breeze Harper and Jasmin Singer, articles from Dan Hanley and Leigh-Chantelle Koch, and recipes from Miss Savvy, Lindsay S. Nixon, Miriam Sorrell, and more.

100+ pages, full colour.

Bread for breakfast

2012-01-09T17:32:00.002+09:00

It was late last night and I was feeling antsy, but didn't want to go to bed, so I proceeded to make bread. There's really something so therapeutic about mixing, kneading, and then seeing the dough rise and expand. I would really love to bake more bread this year. I just love the process and that fresh baked bread aroma that fills the apartment. I pretend that I'm some rustic bread baker in the countryside as I throw flour around and get my hands sticky with dough. Most of the time I have no idea what I'm doing or how the loaf is going to turn out, but I just go with it and hope for the best. No two loaves come out exactly alike, for me anyway, but even when it doesn't come out quite right, I still feel proud for trying.

Here's my latest bread attempt. I used this recipe for reference, but changed it slightly. I made mine with a mix of Korean-grown whole wheat flour and some Rob's Red Mill stone ground whole wheat flour. I also added whole flax seeds and chopped walnuts for some crunch, and dried cranberries for a little sweetness. Oh, and I used molasses instead of honey.

So round and plump, I just want to swaddle it in a blanket like a baby.

I probably could've baked it a little longer, because the inside was ever so slightly on the moist side, but it still came out pretty good. Dense, chewy, and robust.

Chewy slices with a shmear of homemade pumpkin butter.

Yay, this should last me a few breakfasts. Also, I'm sooo glad I added the cranberries and walnuts. They're a stellar combo.

National Foods Mart in Itaewon

2012-01-05T11:21:00.000+09:00

Looks like there's a new foreign food mart in town. National Foods Mart is directly across the street from the other 'original' foreign food mart in Itaewon that we all know and are familiar with. The store is fairly small but is packed with plenty of good products and seems way more organized. Everything has a price sticker, and they actually have cash registers that accept credit cards- some things that the FFM is lacking.

In terms of products, they have the basics covered like spices, canned and dried beans and lentils, imported snacks, fruit preserves, cereals, and even tempeh. They may not have some of the obscure products that the FFM carries, but I'm sure they'll continue to add things to their inventory over time.

Directions: Itaewon Station, Exit 3. Walk straight and turn right at the end of the block. Walk up the hill and the store will be on your right.

Candied Ginger Strips

2012-01-04T11:07:00.001+09:00

I was doing some grocery shopping at the Chinese market the other day and saw loads of beautiful, gigantic ginger roots and simply had to buy bring some home. I looove ginger, but mainly just use it to make ginger cookies. However, for a while now, I've been wanting to make crystallized ginger candy. I've seen it sold occasionally at home plus or department stores, but they are always so expensive for just a little baggie, so I figured I would save myself some bucks and make my own.

From what I understand, ginger root has properties that can strengthen the immune system, reduce inflammation, stimulate blood circulation, and help with digestion and nausea. For more health benefits, check this link. There's no doubt that including eating ginger is a good thing. Well, if you're looking for a way to incorporate more ginger into your life without having to drink buckets of ginger tea or binge on gingersnap cookies, here's one method:

Make crystallized ginger strips! Okay, so I know that the ginger gets covered in sugar which some of you might be avoiding, but this isn't the type of candy that you scarf down all in one go. It's really spicy that just a little piece is usually enough to satisfy that sweet craving, while giving you that lovely warm feeling radiating in your mouth and throat.

These turned out really yummy but they were quite time-consuming to make, especially because I added the extra step of baking them in the oven. However, if you double the recipe, you'll get a huge batch of ginger candy to last you a long time in the fridge or freezer. I also took things to the next level by adding some orange peel and cinnamon, but you can skip that if you'd rather them plain.

Candied Orange-Cinnamon Ginger Strips

3 medium-large ginger roots
1 cup sugar
1 cup water
the peel of 1 orange
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon (or 1 cinnamon stick)
extra sugar for coating

Peel the ginger by scraping it with the edge of a spoon. Rinse clean.

Slice into long strips (or whatever size/shape floats your boat).

In a large pot over medium heat, add equal parts sugar and water, and bring to a boil. Add the ginger, orange rind, and cinnamon.

Lower the heat so that it's just simmering and half-cover the pot with a lid, stirring occasionally, for about 20-30 minutes, or until the ginger is tender. Keep an eye on the pot to make sure the syrup doesn't bubble over, or you'll have a hot sticky mess!

Pour everything into a strainer and catch the syrup in a bowl so that you can use it for other things like ginger tea. Once the ginger pieces have strained sufficiently, lay them out on a baking sheet covered with parchment paper and place in the oven for about 20 minutes at around 100C, just so that the sugary syrup dries up a bit. Otherwise, you'd have to wait many hours, and even still, it will probably be sticky and gooey.

Remove from the oven and let cool fully. Sprinkle a generous amount of sugar and toss until every piece is covered with crystals. :)

Voila, candied ginger strips, with a hint of orange & cinnamon.

Package in an airtight container or jar. I'm guessing it should last at least 2 weeks in the fridge? And even longer in the freezer.

I'm a huge ginger fan and these are deliciously spicy! Because they are so strong, one little piece is usually enough. I've been eating a little every day and I also chopped some up and added them to a batch of ginger-molasses cookies. SO GOOD! I also love the chewy fibers~

Oh, and don't forget to preserve the thick syrup infused with spicy ginger-cinnamon flavor. I like to dilute it with lots of water and then put it in the fridge for a refreshing flavored drink.

Or you can make hot tea~

Happy days.

Out 'n' about

2012-01-03T16:14:00.003+09:00

Last week, my parents were visiting Seoul and we ended up going to Gyeongbokgung palace. Can you believe that I've been living in Seoul for 5+ years and this was my first time going there? Wow.... it's quite shameful. What can i say, sometimes it's the things in your own back yard that get overlooked.

Guards posing by the main gate.

If you'll recall, it was super cold last week so we couldn't stay out too long, but we pretty much walked around the whole palace grounds, which is much larger than I thought! The land was pretty stark and bare, but I imagine it's really beautiful in spring and autumn. :)

Snow covering the frozen pond.

That same day, I had to go to the Yungdeungpo-gu office, and out front there was a small farmer's market going on, so we took a look and ate some yummy samples.

fresh ddeok that was soooo light, chewy, and nutty.

Dried sweet potatoes!

Puffed rice snacks

Fresh, peeled chestnuts. I didn't know that you could eat raw chestnuts, but they were really good~ Surprisingly sweet and crispy, like apples.

Bags of sliced ddeok for New Year's ddeokguk.

yes.... :)

And now for some things I've eaten so far in 2012:

Kicking the new year off on a healthy note, here's my bowl of chia & banana oatmeal for breakfast.

toppings: banana slices, blackstrap molasses, pecan nuts, cinnamon. Ah, some how, starting the year off with heart-healthy oatmeal feels so right.

A ginormous salad composed of lettuce, cabbage, tofu, tempeh, dotori muk, green bell peppers, sea vegetables, onions, and dressing.

And here's the first thing I baked in 2012: coffee chocolate chip cookies.

yum.

Actually, this bibimbab was from last year, but I'll post it anyway because it was delicious.

Chillin at Hapjeong & Hongdae~

Here are more photos of Bunny donning her Christmas sweater. I accidentally spilled some pellets on the floor, so Bunny vacuumed it all up with her mouth. :)

gawd, her cuteness kills me sometimes.

Maoz Vegetarian

2012-01-03T15:41:00.001+09:00

I already posted this on the FB page, but last week I was in the Insadong area and passed by this brand new Maoz Vegetarian location! Maoz finally in Korea! I haven't tried it yet, but from what I've heard, it's pretty Koreanized.... Anyway, check out their website for more info. I think there are several other locations set to open in Seoul soon, which is pretty exciting!

Directions to Maoz by Insadong: Anguk station, Line 3, Exit 6. Walk straight and pass the entrance to Insadong road. Cross the street and Maoz is on the corner.

Hugs on New Year's Day

2012-01-02T16:37:00.006+09:00

Hello! I feel like I have so many half-written posts in my drafts folder, that this blog is getting a little backed up.... but now that the mad holiday season is over, I'll try to get things moving steadily again.

Sunrise over Seoul. This is the view from my window. What a great way to greet a brand new day and year. I'm sooo grateful.

So far, 2012 has been really great. I probably should've done a 'year in review' post like so many other bloggers have done, but I ran out of time and if I start looking back on the past, I might never return to the present. I also don't have any official resolutions or a 101 list to post this year... My plan is just to keep things simple and stay open to God and life. A lot of awesome things went down in 2011, but I also have to admit that it was a tough year for me, emotionally and spiritually. I try not to share too much of my personal struggles on this blog because I'm sure most of you don't care to read that stuff, and I'd like this blog to remain a positive, uplifting resource to vegans in Korea. And on top of that, I'm just not very good at opening myself up and being vulnerable in that way, so yea... in some ways, it was perhaps the toughest year I've had in a long time, but it was also a year of immense personal growth, and I learned so much about myself. And I'm so grateful because I feel that it ended on such a hopeful note, and I feel a lot of peace in my heart for 2012. Phew~ :)

Going along with the topic of staying open and being vulnerable, on Jan 1st, I did something completely new and unlike me. I somehow ended up in Insadong with Chris and his friend who was organizing a Free Hugs campaign in Insadong road. I'm sure many of you have watched the famous original Free Hugs clip, and perhaps have even seen a campaign in your own city. It's a simple idea, but kind of profoundly moving.

At first, I was really skeptical and self-conscious about putting myself out there on the street and making myself vulnerable in that way. I told Chris I would just take photos and watch from the side, but somehow, I ended up with one of the posters in my hand and just went with it..... and contrary to my fears, I didn't die of humiliation or rejection. Infact, to my surprise, people actually came up to give and get hugs! Ajushis, ajumas, tourists, kids, expats.... So many times, I've thought of Koreans as being cold and not very affectionate, but I saw a different side of Koreans and an openness which was really quite beautiful.

It's amazing how something as simple as a hug between strangers, and just saying "happy new year" can bring a smile to one's face and just spread a little warmth and love.

A super nice ajusshi on the street was taking photos of tourists and giving them printed copies for free, and he took a few pics of us!

In the end, I was glad that I participated. Sometimes I need a little push to get out of my own self-centered little world and open up my heart (and arms) and try something new. A new experience for a new year.

Well, to end this post, I just want to say a quick thank you to everyone for reading along in 2011, for all your comments, emails, and for hanging out with me on Alien's Day Out! I'm sending everyone virtual hugs across the internet, and I'm super excited for all the beautiful people, food, and sights I'll experience in 2012. 새해 복 많이 받으세요^^!

Goodbye 2011~

2012-01-01T22:30:00.003+09:00

Happy New Year~ Hope everyone has transitioned into 2012 with peace, joy, and hope in your heart for the upcoming year! I actually went to Jubilee church's midnight service for the countdown, but earlier during the day, I hung out at a coffee shop by Gwanghwamun and walked by the chungaechun stream for a bit. Too cold to walk outside for long!

Making wishes for 2012.

This made me sad.

Seriously? Horse-drawn carriages in Seoul? Doesn't make any sense and it's not cool. Watch the documentary 'Blinders' to learn more.

Anyway, later in the evening, I went ice skating with some friends at city hall's outdoor plaza~ The ice was quite rough and bumpy with so much use, but thankfully I didn't fall on my butt!

Hyun skates and takes phone calls at the same time. :)

Hyun and her friends visiting from Hong Kong. :)

We only skated for about 45 minutes, before they closed off the rink to clean up the ice. I don't think I could've skated for too much longer anyway cuz my toes were getting cold! hehe. Anyhooz, I had a great New Year's Eve, and I really couldn't have asked for a better way to close out the year. Goodbye 2011.... it's been real.

Best of 2011

2011-12-30T16:51:00.013+09:00

Hey readers in Korea! The poll results for the Alien's Day Out Best of 2011 Survey are officially in! A huge thank you to everyone who submitted and also for leaving some wonderful and touching comments. I truly appreciate all your feedback and kind words.

Disclaimer: although there are numerous fine vegan-friendly establishments outside of the capital city, Alien's Day Out is primarily a Seoul-based blog, so this survey focused on eateries within Seoul. Perhaps in the future, I'll open it up to include other cities. :) Moreover, with competition amongst restaurants and cafes being incredibly tough, there were several eateries that bit the dust this year: Honest Loving Hut, Muffino Cafe, and Macro Cafe (not in Seoul), to name a few. While we bid a sad farewell to those veg-friendly spots, we also welcomed some newbies to the scene such as Thien Dang Loving Hut, Garobee, and Bao. It is our hope that as more conscious restaurants pop up around this city, we will be able to vote with our hard-earned Won, support their efforts, and also show that there is an ever-growing demand for vegetarian food and products in Korea.

So without further ado, here are your picks for the 'Best of 2011' veggie survey, along with some commentary from me. I don't have an actual award to give to them, but they just get props on this blog and perhaps this will encourage them to develop more vegan-friendly dishes. Thank you again, and Enjoy!

*****
****
***
**
*

Most veg-friendly neighborhood in Seoul
Itaewon, Noksapyeong, Haebangchon

This is where you can find some delicious vegan Indian curry, Thai noodles, falafels, hummus, and veggie burgers in Seoul. With such diversity of International cuisines and food options, there's always something for a vegan, and since most waitstaff are familiar with English, foreigners can specify their dietary needs without too much trouble or wild hand motions. :)
Runners up: Hongdae/Hapjeong & Insadong/Samcheongdong

Best Fancy Veg-Friendly Restaurant
The Taj: Taste of India (Gangnam location)

In the heart of Gangnam, The Taj: Taste of India is a more upscale Indian restaurant with a classy, romantic ambiance, modern and clean washrooms, and very accommodating service. With curries averaging at 17,000won, it's certainly on the pricier side, but the food tastes absolutely delicious and you get to dine in style for your special occasion. website
Runners up: Zelen & Kyotofu

Best Loving Hut location in Seoul
Achasan Loving Hut buffet

Perhaps it is no surprise that an all-you-can-eat joint should win the top spot out of all the Loving Hut establishments. For the very reasonable price of 12,000 won on a weekday (16,000 on weekends), you can enjoy a fresh salad bar, various Korean dishes, soy and wheat meat dishes, soups, spaghetti to order, and a fruit bar. And you can finish up your meal with vegan cookies, banana cake bites, and a hot cuppa coffee. Everything is 100% vegan and even your omnivore friends will leave impressed and feeling they got their money's worth. Website
Runner up: Thien Dang Loving Hut

Best Korean / Temple food restaurant
Sanchon (Insadong)

Eating at Sanchon is like going to an event where you get a multiple-course meal and entertainment in the form of traditional Korean music and dancing. Their dinner price is definitely on the steep side, but for those who want a cultural experience that goes beyond just temple-food, I recommend checking this place out at least once. It has been long-established as one of Seoul's finest Temple food restaurants, and has even been reviewed in the New York Times. A word of warning, since this is a temple-food restaurant, the flavors and spices are mild and even slightly bland, but everything is prepared and presented with mindfulness and delicacy. For Alien's Day Out's first review of Sanchon, check this old blog post.

Best Vegetarian Buffet
Achasan Loving Hut buffet

Once again, Achasan Loving Hut wins the top spot, this time in the best vegan buffet category. Compared to other buffets in Korea, the price, quality of food, diversity of dishes, all simply cannot be beat. :)
Runner up: Garobee buffet (Gangnam)

Best Veggie Burger
Loving Hut, Thiendang

If you have a hankering for a veggie burger, look no further than Thien Dang Loving Hut. Their 'Big Burger' is composed of a juicy veggie pattie, sandwiched between layers of lettuce, fresh apple slices, tomato, thousand-island dressing, and vegan whole wheat burger buns (5,000won). Oh, and for an additional 2,000won, you can complete your happy meal with a side of crinkly fries.
Runner up: The Wolfhound Pub (Itaewon)

Best vegan-friendly bakery
Alien's Day Out bake shop

Wow, I really did not expect the ADO bake shop to get first spot in this category. I am incredibly grateful to those who voted, and especially to all those customers who have taken a chance on my startup online biz. I thank you all. Well, I'm not sure what kind of commentary to write that doesn't sound self-congratulatory, so instead, I will just point you to what customers have written in the reviews page.

Runner up: Veggie Holic (Hongdae)
My personal favorite nominee: October Bakery in Hapjeong

Best Independent, Vegan-friendly Coffee Shop
Cafe Harunohee (Gunja)

In addition to having vegan soy milk on their menu, Cafe Harunohee has held several vegan events this past year that make them deserving of this title, such as hosting a vegan bake sale fundraiser, and having a 'Vegan Day' event. Moreover, they occasionally had vegan desserts on the menu such as strawberry shortcake and cookies from the ADO bake shop.
Runners up: Cook and Book, Standing Coffee, Sukkara

Best veg-friendly Indian, Pakistani, Nepali restaurant
Everest (Dongdaemun)

Everest is a true gem of a restaurant in Seoul, famous for its delicious Indian/Nepali cuisine, and it's the perfect oasis to rest your feet after hours of hectic shopping in Dongdaemun. Here, you can fill up on mouthwatering curries and fluffy-warm roti bread, all at very affordable prices. The servers are always accommodating for vegans, and eating here is like escaping Korea for a brief moment, as you get to surround yourself with exotic decor and watch Bollywood music videos in the background.
Runner up: Taj Palace (Itaewon)

Best veg-friendly Thai restaurant
Buddha's Belly

A swanky restaurant that serves up some delicious coconut curries and pad thai. Most of their menu is not vegan, so you have to specifically request that they do not use fish-sauce or eggs in their dishes. However, they do provide the option to add tofu instead of animal meat in their curries and noodle dishes. Personally, my experiences at Buddha's Belly have been a bit unpredictable, and sometimes the waitstaff are not knowledgeable about veganism, but in the end, their food has never disappointed. Check blog post for more details.
Runner up (and ADO personal favorite): Wang Thai in Itaewon

Best veg-friendly Mexican restaurant
Dos tacos

With several locations around Seoul, Dos Tacos is certainly one of the more well-known Mexican restaurant chains in Korea. Reasonable prices, fast service, fresh ingredients, vegan tortillas, helpful waitstaff, and a customizable menu are all factors that make Dos Tacos a favorite amongst the veg community. Personal faves: the refried bean broccoli burrito, & the potato burrito. Website
Runner up: Tacos Amigos

Best supermarket for imported food items (storefront)
Foreign Food Mart

This was hands-down, the most-voted foreigner-friendly supermarket in Seoul. This is where you can go to get tempeh, liquid smoke, flax seeds, brot, dried & canned chickpeas, pumpkin puree, and a variety of vegan snacks. The store is somewhat chaotic as they do not allow credit cards or give receipts, but they do seem to be improving, and they have perhaps the most diverse international food products than any other foreign supermarket in Seoul. (Although a brand new, fairly impressive international food store just opened up across the street, which could give the FFM a run for its money!)
Runner up: Costco

Best online shop for vegan food products
www.iHerb.com

For expats, health-nuts, and anyone on a vegan/gluten-free/raw diet in Korea, iHerb has become a complete lifesaver. In fact, it's hard to remember how we survived without iHerb and its affordable international shipping rates. Where else would we get nutritional yeast, gluten-free sorghum flour, or vegan-specific supplements? Oh how we heart iHerb. (First time shoppers, you can use coupon code MIP268 for $5 off).

Favorite Vegan Korean Soy Milk Brand
Yeonsei Organic Soy Milks

Yonsei Organic soy milks were voted as the favorite soy milk brand. There are two types, the regular organic soy milk in the blue cartons, and the sugar & stabilizer-free organic version in the brown cartons. They were both on top, so I have just grouped them together. You can find the regular organic soy milk at EMart, department stores, online, or at Loving Hut locations, however, the sugar-free version is slightly harder to find. I have occasionally seen them at EMart, but I think the best way is to order them from GMarket.
Runner up: Woori Soy Milk

Favorite online veg resource for Korea
Alien's Day Out blog
Again, thank you so much! You guys flatter me~~ :)
Runner up: Hanulvut.com

Favorite Animal Organization
Animal Rescue Korea

(Photo credit: ARK website)
ARK has successfully placed numerous abandoned animals into loving homes and has organized several fundraisers this year to help the animals at the Asan shelter. The website is well-maintained and has plenty of information regarding pet travel to/from Korea as well as foreigner-friendly vet clinics. All the ARK volunteers I have met are passionate and tirelessly dedicated to helping animals. Please check their website for information on adopting or fostering a furry friend.
Runner up: CARE

And last but not least, here's how you rated the difficulty of following lifestyles from 1 (impossible) to 10 (easy).
Vegetarian 8.1
Veganism 5.8
Gluten Free 4.8
Raw Vegan 3.8

*****
Thank you for reading! Let's hope 2012 brings plenty more vegan options in Seoul~

All photos unless otherwise noted are taken by and belong to Alien's Day Out. Please do not use or reproduce without permission.

What Santa brought Bunny

2011-12-27T10:22:00.001+09:00

Perhaps my readers are getting bored of seeing holiday cookie pictures on this blog, but here are some very special cookies I made to give a dear vegan friend in my life. They were butt-ugly, but very much loved by the recipient.... Bunny! :) haha, yes, I made rabbit treats!!! My first attempt at making homemade snacks for Bunny and judging by how she goes completely nuts for them, I reckon they were a success.

I used the recipe from the House Rabbit Society as reference, but adjusted the measurements slightly, and added a tiny bit of whole wheat flour to get a thicker dough for rolling and cutting out cookie shapes. It's a bit of a process, but well worth it to have healthy snacks for your bunny with good quality ingredients. So if anyone has a rabbit, this one's for you. :) High fives to all ma fellow Bunny-lovers!

Homemade Bunny Biscuits

1/3 cup rabbit pellets
1/3 cup oats
1 Tbs whole wheat flour
1 small carrot
1 small ripe banana
1 tbsp organic agave syrup
extra Tbs of oats for texture

1. Preheat oven to 320F.

2. In a food processor, grind the pellets and oats into flour. Add the carrot, banana, wheat flour, and agave syrup and whizz until everything sticks together and there are no large carrot bits. Transfer dough to a bowl and add about 1 Tbs of rolled oats for some texture (optional).

3. Roll the dough out to about 1/2 cm thick and cut into shapes. I rolled it out between some saran-wrap, just to keep things cleaner. Place on cookie sheet and bake for about 30 - 40 minutes, depending on how crunchy you want the treats to be. Turn off the heat and leave the cookies in the oven to continue dehydrating a bit more. I made mine pretty dry so that Bunny gets lots of crunch.

4. Give sparingly to your rabbit as a special treat, along with a well-balanced diet. :)

And as a Christmas pressie, I bought bunny her first piece of clothing! Yea, I've become one of those people who dress up their furry friends... I never thought I'd be the type, but apparently I am... don't judge! I just don't want Bunny to get too cold when she goes outside on the patio. ^^

How does she look? I couldn't find a suit specific for rabbits, so I got one for a small dog and cut the sleeves off so that it fit her better and so that she can move easily.

Where's Bunny?

I'm amazed that she didn't even struggle while I put the thing on her. haha. She's a trooper for putting up with me.

"Does this make my butt look big?"

And here she is chasing a biscuit treat. I'm a mean mommy, I know.

ech, gimme....

finally~ nom nom nom...

Bunny loves the treats~ She comes running whenever she hears the cookie bag rustle, but I have to exercise restraint and only give her one or two a day. Now I'm excited for all the other types of cookies I can make for her, using all her favorite veggies and fruit! Apples, persimmon, lettuce, cabbage... oh the possibilities.

Mehwy Cwismas~~

Have yourself a merry vegan Christmas~

2011-12-25T22:31:00.002+09:00

Happy Christmas! I had a wonderful weekend, hanging out with dear friends, being with family, and gobbling up lots of homey eats. On Friday, Chris was hosting a small Christmas appetizer & dessert potluck, so I got busy in the kitchen, preparing the following desserts:

I know pumpkin pie is more traditionally eaten for Thanksgiving, but I actually didn't get any at Thanksgiving dinner this year. Although Kia's pumpkin cheesecake was seriously amazeballs, I still felt a deep longing in my soul for pumpkin pie. A month later, I could no longer ignore the craving, so I decided to make it for Christmas.

I went with the same Veg Web Tofu Pumpkin pie recipe I've used for several years now. However, it didn't turn out so well this time because I had to strain the canned pumpkin puree which was too runny. In the end though, I think I maybe strained it too much! As a result, the filling was thicker/denser than normal, and it also had a 'skin' on the top from being overbaked. Oops.

It still tasted fine, but I might have to appease the perfectionist freak inside me by making another one soon.

Ah, what a fine spread. No one wanted to bother with fancy entree dishes or create a sit-down menu, so we all decided to have an apps & 'serts potluck. No entrees allowed. :)

For my appetizer contribution, I brought two different dips (to be eaten with good ol' nacho chips): tomato-garlic bean dip, and a vegan chickin' salad-style dip made with bamboo shoots. In addition to the pumpkin pie, for dessert, I brought cherry-chocolate chip cookies, mint chocolate wafer cookies, and strawberry thumbprint cookies.

Here are some other treats: traditional Korean snacks.

Chris found some vegan bread at the 'Milk & Honey' bakery section of EMart. Yea, the bakery name is not 'vegan' at all, but apparently, they have some decent animal-free bread. Loved the dark loaf. So chewy-good.

Yunseo's signature ddeokbokki, for spicy deliciousness.

Everyone also brought pressies and stuck them under the Christmas bush. It felt like being with family~ :) Eating good grub, opening up presents, and then watching 'Elf' and eventually falling asleep.

Oh, and during the night, it snowed enough that there was a thin white blanket covering Seoul the next morning. I took Bunny out to admire the snow.

Being the high-maintenance bunny that she is, she wasn't too keen on getting snow in between her toes and quickly scampered off to dry ground. She's such a prissy pot.

Then on Saturday, I headed down to Cheonan to spend the rest of Christmas weekend with the 'rents. Here are some neighborhood shots of the snowfall in Cheonan.

Christmas eve dinner was at my uncle & aunt's house, where we had bibimbab, japchae, miyukgook, and lots of vegan kimchi. I know bibimbab isn't exactly a special holiday meal, but I don't think you can go wrong when there's rice, and a bunch of my favorite Korean banchans all mixed up in one bowl. YUM.

For breakfast on Christmas morning, before rushing back to Seoul, I had homemade dan patjuk (sweet red bean porridge) with rice balls, some toast, and loads of fresh fruit. A perfect brekkie.

Oh, and before I end today's Christmas post, here's Bunny with a bit of Christmas flare. haha. I just took one of those fruit foam wrappers and put it around her neck. I thought she would try to take it off, but I don't think she even realized it was on her.

She just went on her jolly way, doin' her biznaz, etc, while I laughed at her and took pics to show you guys. She entertains me endlessly.

Wellps, that's all I got for tonight. Have a good Christmas!

baby it's cold outside....

2011-12-23T13:04:00.002+09:00

Crappidy crap, it's so colddddd! blargh. Is it just me, or is winter this year extra brutal? I really ought to get a warmer coat, but in my mind, coat-shopping is a chore. Especially when trying to find a good cruelty-free one in Korea that is affordable and stylish at the same time. If anyone's got any leads, help a vegan sista out! Thankfully, I got some toasty gloves as a Christmas present the other day, so my hands are covered.

Anyhooz, Wednesday was my dad's birthday, so I made a quick trip to Cheonan to celebrate. Sadly, I wasn't able to do anything really special for him this year. :( Poor dad. I always feel bad because his birthday falls so close to Christmas day, and everyone's so busy that he doesn't get as much as he deserves. However, my mom put together a yummy birthday lunch:

Check out these onion ring jeon pancakes! Somehow, my mom got this idea of pouring the pancake batter into floured onion rings. hehe. They were cute and delicious.

bean sprout and chives banch'

For dessert, I made a blueberry-almond cake, using a recipe from a Korean vegan baking book.

I loaded it with tons of blueberries (frozen), so it was positively oozing with gooey goodness. The bottom got a bit over-baked and it was rather plain for a birthday cake (no frosting, sprinkles etc), but thankfully, my dad is a simple kinda-guy and is pretty easy to please in the sweets-department. He never says anything bad about my baking, even when I think it's a flop. haha. Love my dad!

Hm, onto some other vegan eats, I recently had lunch at Garobee buffet. Yummy and fresh.

Tater tots!!!! Let's all take a moment to picture Napoleon Dynamite stuffing his pockets with 'tots.

Well, it's Friday today, which means Christmas weekend! :) I'm going to a small potluck gathering tonight, and so i just made some miniature cookies and now I have a pumpkin pie in the oven. :) Fingers crossed.... If I don't post anything tomorrow, Merry Christmas!!! ta ta~

Bottomless cookie jar

2011-12-22T21:23:00.002+09:00

Wow, it's been a while since my last post. I'm sure other bloggers can relate when I say that I'm constantly thinking about this blog and my readers, even if it might not show visibly on here. Lately, I've just been a bit scatterbrained and disorganized. heehehe... I could be on the subway or just strolling through the grocery store, and I'll get this profound idea for a blog topic, and I'll say to myself "oh, I have to share that with my readers." But then ofcourse, by the time I actually sit down to write a cohesive post, I've long-forgotten all brilliant thoughts, my mind goes blank, and then I get distracted with other things. Bah. So I guess this is my feeble excuse for being a bit MIA lately. But fear not, my blog is not forgotten or neglected!

So then, what have I been up to? Well, the truth of the matter is that I've been spending most of my time baking. Holiday cookies, to be precise. Yeup. I wish I could say that I've been busy finding a cure for cancer or saving the world somehow, but nope... I've merely turned into a cookie-making machine. Not exactly lofty or glamorous, but by golly it's so much fun! Lately, I've been finding any excuse to try out new cookie creations, whether it be for my dad's birthday, for all my lovely bake shop customers, or for the ladies who work at my local post office. Cookies just make perfect holiday pressies and never fail to put a smile on someone's face.

In addition to actually baking the cookies, I've also had a blast photographing the results. Food photography has turned into such an awesome hobby and creative outlet, and you guys are my captive audience. Some of yous may have already seen some of these pics on my FB page, but for those of you who haven't, behold the cookie parade:

Ha. And you thought I was joking about me going cookie-crazy. One day, I'll have to compile all my cookie pictures into a recipe booklet or something... :)

Oh, and there's only one more week to fill out the 'Best of 2011 Survey' for Korea! Hop to it. Spit spot.

Noodle Box

2011-12-17T15:30:00.000+09:00

This is a bit old, but a few weeks ago, some friends and I were wandering around Hongdae looking for dinner and we ended up at a Noodle Box joint. There are a few locations around Seoul, including one right by Itaewon station.

They serve southeast asian food like pad thai and vietnamese-style noodles, and everything is always served in takeout boxes, even if you're eating in. It's a fun gimmick, but once the meal is over, you're left with a table covered with trash. It's a lot of unnecessary waste when you could just enjoy your dish from a washable plate. Hm... not such an environmentally friendly concept.

They prides themselves on their healthy menu and quick service. However, I think their menu falls short on the veg*an front. The only potentially vegetarian item is their Bun Bo Xao (5,700 won), which is a cold noodle dish with pineapples, carrot, onions, and cucumber, and some traditional Vietnamese sauce. I would've ordered this, but they were out of the necessary ingredients (weird since there's not a whole lot that goes into it anyway), so I ended up modifying their pad thai dish (no shrimp or eggs).

Not a whole lot of ingredients left in the end. haha. Taste-wise, it was decent. It definitely could've had more colorful veggies like the photo on their website shows, but it was aiight and I didn't feel too bad about it since it was cheap (6,700 won).

For more info on locations and menu, check their website.

Random eats!

2011-12-16T18:43:00.001+09:00

Last week I went to Cheonan to help with the annual gimjang kimchi undertaking. My aunt was also making a ton of kimchi for her sister and friend, so we shared the workload. Her kimchi wasn't vegan, but my mom made a separate kimchi paste that was animal-free, just for me. I really need to post a proper recipe for vegan kimchi some day, but my mom always just eyeballs all the measurements so it's a bit hard to keep track....

The vegan kimchi paste

If kimchi were a currency, I'd be ballin' wid my giant tubs of vegan kimch' yo!

My own, my prrrecious. Yea, I get a bit protective over kimchi. I think I'm actually eating a bit too much these days that it's not going to last me all winter. Must ration...

Little bit of ddeok for a snack

I also took some tempeh to Cheonan for my parents to try for their first time. My mom sauteed it with some other veggies and it was delicious!

Vegan jeon pancakes.

We also tried making yakbab with brown rice, but it didn't quite turn out right because we didn't soak or cook the rice long enough. As a result, the rice was a bit on the tough side, but it still tasted yummy~ I love yakbab! It's like an energy bar or a portable snack, but it's not something I buy often because it's typically made with white rice. If I get ever get around to trying it again with brown rice, i'll definitely share it on here!

Vegan dwenjang jjigye. One of my favorite Korean comfort foods.

Here's today's lunch. Rice, sauteed veggies, tempeh bacon (again), and gim.

If you can't tell, I'm totally addicted to tempeh these days. I have it almost every day! So stoked that the FFM started selling it.

Dotori mook salad with kimchi, gim, and sesame oil.

And here's my latest order from iHerb. :) 2 packs of sorghum flour (for gluten-free experiments, hehe), aluminum-free baking soda, rooibos tea, and organic vanilla extract. Don't we all love this site? It's a godsend for us expats in Korea....

Aiights people. That's all for today. Happy Friday!!! I'm gonna go snuggle with Bunny now.

Ps. Don't forget to submit your entry for the 'Best of 2011' Seoul Survey! And thanks to those who have already done it. So far, some interesting results!

Polls open for my 'Best of 2011' Survey!

2011-12-15T16:24:00.001+09:00

There's only a few more weeks before 2011 comes to an end, and you know what that means? The Alien's Day Out 'Best of 2011' Awards! For those of us in Korea, let's take some time to look back on a glorious year of vegan living in the land of morning calm.

Last year, I compiled and shared my personal 'Best of 2010' list, but this time, I'm opening it up for the public to decide.

We've all enjoyed some delicious cruelty-free meals, explored new parts of Seoul, and discovered new online resources and delivery services to make vegan-living in Korea easier than before. So what better time than now to highlight those that were most memorable! This is your chance to voice your opinion and vote for your favorite veg-friendly restaurant, neighborhood, or grocery store. Who knows, maybe this survey will encourage more meat-centered establishments to provide vegan options in the future~

The polls will be open until Wednesday Dec 28th (less than 2 weeks), after which the results will be posted here on the blog. So what are you waiting for? Vote away! :)

Side notes: After much thought, I decided to limit the list of restaurants/cafes to those in Seoul. I understand that there are numerous vegan eateries outside of the capital city, but since Alien's Day Out is primarily a Seoul-focused blog, we'll start here. Perhaps next year, we'll open it up a bit more. :) Last but not least, there are several veg-friendly establishments I really wanted to include, but sadly, they have closed their doors. Macro Cafe, Muffinio Cafe, and Honest Loving Hut, to name a few. I'm still mourning the loss of Macro and their veggie burger.... sigh.

POLLS OPEN NOW. VOTE HERE! 1 submission per computer.

French Christmas Fair

2011-12-13T17:42:00.001+09:00

Last Saturday, some friends and I checked out the French Christmas Fair at Sorae Maeul, the French village. It was a bit smaller than I expected, but it was still a good time with some interesting sights. Just being around so many French people and hearing people talking in French reminded me of my fabulous vacation in Paris earlier this year. Sigh... I miss the Raspail Organic Market! good times.

buttery pastries, sadly non-vegan.

There was even a stall making buckwheat crepes! I was about to order a plain one, but then i saw the man rub butter on the crepe pan before pouring on the batter, so I opted out.

Jolly vendors selling baguette sandwiches. :)

homemade, organic fruit preserves

Olive tapenade. Looks like a bit of a mess, but it all tasted good!

some sugar cookies.... they were 5,000won each!! dayaaam.

tons of people....

Raffle tickets! (we didn't win anything... boo~)

It was soooo cold outside that we couldn't enjoy the fair for too long and headed to a nearby cozy cafe to hangout~ Overall, it was a great day! Perhaps next year, I'll get my own table at the fair and sell some French-inspired vegan treats. :P

And here are some sweet things I've baked and eaten lately:

Christmas fruit cake

Chocolate cherry almond cookies.

I also made some ginger-coconut muffins. I've had these Christmas muffin cups for several years, so I finally put some of them to good use.

Love this muffin cup~~ so cute. I bought it at Bangsan baking market last year.

Boozy Vegan Christmas Fruit Cake

2011-12-10T11:00:00.002+09:00

Happy First Snow day in Korea! :) I was walking around outside yesterday and thought my face was gonna freeze off. Brr~ I hate winter weather, but I admit that I do love the holiday season. It just makes me want to round up all my family members and close friends, and give them a big bear hug. This time of the year also brings up so many good childhood memories of when my family lived in England/Edinburgh, and West Africa.... Some of my favorite Christmas memories took place in the UK, where we'd have Christmas crackers, chocolate advent calendars, and ofcourse, the stodgy Christmas fruit cake with marzipan on top.

For the longest time, I didn't enjoy Christmas fruit cake at all because it was just too dense and... fruity. I had a prejudice against it because it just seemed like something for old fogies. I guess shriveled up dried fruit with a hint of bitter rum just isn't something a kid craves. But now that I'm grown up and want to indulge in some old-school traditions, I've come to appreciate this classic dessert in a new way.

To start, I checked out various vegan fruit cake recipes online and then adjusted them according to what I have and the size I wanted. Traditionally, you're supposed to bake the cake, wrap it up and store it in a tin container while "feeding" it with alcohol for a few weeks until it is good and fermented with rum. And then before serving, you top it with a blanket of marzipan. Phew! That's just more time and work than I'm willing to put into cake, so I called it 'done' after the first step. hehe. To anyone who does the whole shebang, my hat's off to you! :)

For the alcohol, I originally wanted to use rum, but couldn't find it on short-notice so I just went with whiskey instead, which turned out fine. I actually didn't use much alcohol compared to certain fruit cakes I've had in the past. I remember one year when my parents were living in Wales, my mom made her first real fruit cake, with all the works. So several weeks later on Christmas day, we finally cut into it and it was so boozy, you could definitely get a little buzz going from one slice! Mine on the other hand, isn't that strong at all, but you can feel a teeny bit of warmth down your throat when you bite into a fruit piece that has been plumpified with the whiskey. :P

My first cake was tasty but a bit lacking in the fruit department, so for my second go, I increased the amount and variety of fruit to get this:

I think this one strikes a good ratio between cake and fruit- just enough to get the pretty stained glass window effect. Even still, it had less than most of the other recipes I checked out! I actually don't like it when fruit cake gets too bogged down with so much fruit that it's as heavy as a brick and just tooooo sugary sweet.

Instead of marzipan, I just decorated on top with blanched whole almonds.

Boozy Christmas Fruit Cake
Makes 1 medium cake
advance preparation required

1/4 cup rum or whiskey
3/4 - 1 cup total of dried fruit. I used the following:

raisins
sultanas
dried tart cherries
dried apricots
dried cranberries
caramelized orange peel
tropical dried fruit mix (papaya, mango, pineapple bits)

125g all purpose flour (1 cup)
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp ground nutmeg
1/2 cup soy milk
1 tsp brown rice vinegar
45ml canola oil
80g sugar (3/8 cup)
2 tsp soy bean flour
2Tbs blackstrap molasses
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1/4 tsp orange extract
1/4 tsp almond extract (optional)
handful of blanched almonds.

1. Soak dried fruit in the whisky for at least 24 hours, stirring every so often so that all the pieces get softened.
2. When you're ready to bake, preheat your oven to 350F or 175C. Prepare your baking pan by lining it with paper or some oil and a light dusting of flour.
3. Sift the flour, spices, and baking powder together.
4. In a separate bowl, add the vinegar to the soymilk and set aside to curdle for a few minutes (essentially making buttermilk). Add soy bean flour, oil, sugar, molasses, extracts, and whisk well.
5. Mix the wet and dry ingredients until just incorporated, and then add the soaked dried fruit and almonds. Be careful not to overmix.
6. Pour into your prepared baking pan, and decorate with more almonds. Bake for 40-50 minutes, or until it is looks nice and dark on the top and a toothpick inserted comes out clean. Careful not to poke it too many times, or you might push all the fruit down to the bottom! :P

*I usually measure everything in grams for accuracy and consistency's sake, but I've tried to include volume measurements on the side.

Moist, sweet, and has a lot of depth of flavor. Mmm~ tastes like Christmas. Cheers! (Gunbae!)

Here's a tiny, single-serving cake I made with some leftover batter. :)

Oh, do you like the rudolph card? I got it in the mail yesterday, from my unnie. First Christmas card of the year. :) xo

Happy Holidays, friends!

Ps. For those in Korea, this fruitcake is available on my bakeshop site. Order soon to get yours in time for Christmas!

First gluten-free baking attempt: Carrot Bread!

2011-12-08T22:07:00.004+09:00

So it's already Thursday night and I really don't know where this whole week has gone.... time is just flying and before I know it, it will be 2012. craziness.

Anyway, before I start looking too far ahead, I wanna backtrack for a sec and do a post about the gluten-free carrot bread I made last week~ As mentioned before, this was my first foray into the world of gf baking and I have to say, I was nervous! hehe. Clearly, I don't have any intolerance to gluten, but I've gotten a few requests from some readers in Korea asking if I can include some gf items on the bake shop site, so I figured it would be useful to learn a bit about baking with different flours. Gosh, I can't imagine being gluten-intolerant in Korea... it must be a nightmare, so I think it would be cool to be able to eventually provide some gf treats.

When I first started looking into gf baking, I was totally intimidated by all the different flours that I have never used or even heard about before. At least in Korea the flour varieties are more limited, which is actually a good thing because it simplifies my options... No teff, sorghum, or quinoa flours here (at least not that I know of). Instead, so far, I've found the following flours online, at supermarkets, or at the Foreign Food Mart:

rice flour (various types)
soy bean flour
corn flour
pumpkin/kabocha flour
potato starch
tapioca starch
buckwheat flour
coconut flour

Still a decent amount of options, and I'm sure there will be plenty of wild experiments in the future!

Since this was my first time baking gf, I wasn't sure what to expect. The bread rose beautifully, but the texture was noticeably... different. It was slightly gummier than I expected, but had this spongy quality to it at the same time. Is this normal? I also noticed that even though I only used 1/6 cup of oil, it still felt oily to the touch. It was still definitely edible though, and not bad for a first gf attempt! I'm a bit hesitant to post the recipe because I'm a total gf-noob and the carrot bread isn't quite where I want it to be. However, I'll let you try it and judge for yourself.... maybe you can tweak the recipe and let me know how yours turns out. :)

For my gluten-free flour mix, I used a blend of three different flours/starches:

White rice flour 1 3/4 cup (270g)
Potato starch 2 cup or (205g)
Tapioca starch 1 1/2 cup (205g)

Gluten-Free Carrot Bread
makes 1 small loaf

1 cup gf flour mix (see above)
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 tsp xanthan gum
3/4 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp nutmeg
1/4 tsp all spice
1/4 tsp ground ginger
1/8 tsp ground cloves

1/4 cup + 2Tbs sugar (could increase slightly)
1/6 cup canola oil
1/3 cup soy milk
1/2 tsp brown rice vinegar
3/4 cup grated carrot

1/4 cup raisins, walnuts, etc

Preheat oven to 135F and prepare your baking tin. Sift and mix all dry ingredients together. Measure out the soymilk and add the vinegar, setting it aside for a few minutes for it to curdle. In a separate bowl, whisk the wet ingredients, including the sugar, and also add the soymilk-vinegar mixture. Mix the wet with the dry, until just incorporated and gently stir in the raisins and nuts. Pour into baking pan and place in oven. Bake for about 40-45 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted comes out clean.

MMA Night of Champions Event

2011-12-05T15:42:00.006+09:00

On Saturday, I ended up going to an MMA event: Night of Champions! lol. This was my first time going to such an event and I don't watch these kind of sports on TV, but Chris was going with the guys from his Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu gym and he invited me to tag along. Not exactly my usual scene or crowd and I felt a bit out of place amongst all the testosterone, but I had a surprisingly good time.

The best part was when the contenders would strip off their shirts to reveal their ripped torsos. O.o If only I had my glasses with me so I could get a clearer look! dammit. I don't usually care for macho buffness, but I'll admit that I fully appreciated their bulky arms and rippling abs.

rolling around.....

As for the fighting itself, it was actually a lot of fun. At first, it was really shocking and jarring to see people punching and kicking each other in real life. Even though we were up in the nosebleeds, we could still hear the sounds from the fighters getting punched or kneed in the gut. cringe! But I got de-sensitized fast enough and by the end, I was yelling for more action like everyone else. I blame mob-mentality. Oh, and yes there was blood. Bloody noses and scratched up faces. But amazingly, after the fight, the loser would get up and give the victor a handshake or even a big hug. What the! If someone repeatedly punched me in the face, I think I'd take it personally. I don't know how they do it, but I think it's kinda cool.

For snacks, I brought some cookies and gluten-free carrot bread which the guys ate up. I'm always grateful for any opportunity to pass off some of my test batches. Glad my friends don't mind getting my scraps. haha.

Here's the GF carrot bread in better lighting. This was my first gluten-free baking attempt! And it was edible! :P I've gotten several requests from people asking if I can include some gf stuff on the bake shop, so I've been wanting to learn more about this method of baking~ It's really a whole new and intimidating world and there's so much to learn and discover... I'll do a separate blog post on this soon, with more details on GF flours in Korea, etc.

Anywayyy, back to MMA. I have to say that by the end of the event, I was really motivated to get buff and kick some booty! Honestly, with the weather getting cold and not having found a good gym in my new neighborhood, I've somewhat neglected my running routine. So with the lack of physical activity, I've been feeling really antsy these days. For the past month, I've been looking for a decent gym but all of them are crusty-old. But then today, I came across this jiu-jitsu/kickboxing/fitness gym that just recently opened and it's only 5 minutes from my place! Ahh~! I really wanna sign up. It's a bit pricey but I think it will be so much fun! And they have treadmills, so I can still run when I want. jackpot.

Here's something random I ate this weekend. I bought some canned pumpkin puree in the hopes of making pumpkin pie, but for some reason, the puree was really watery and thin. Bummer. So instead, I ended up making a spicy savory soup using minced garlic, diced onions, smoked chipotle pepper, salt, black pepper, and some soy milk poured in at the very end.

And since Christmas is coming up soon, I'm going to make a boozy Christmas fruit cake! I bought whiskey the other day (couldn't find any rum at E Mart) for my dried fruits to get good and drunk. They've been marinating for over 24 hours now so they're fat and plumpy. heheheh.... You can't see me, but I'm making an evil grin and drumming my steepled fingers together. >:)

Hope everyone had an action-packed weekend~

Holiday Gingerbread Cookies

2011-11-30T18:42:00.001+09:00

Now that it's the holiday season, I've become completely obsessed with baking cookies. Hm... there's something about turning on the ondol floor heating, sipping a mug of minty hot chocolate, and listening to some naughty Christmas dubstep, that just makes me want to dance around and bake cookies. Lemon drop cookies, chai snickerdoodles, pecan shortbread cookies, chocolate cherry cookies.... I've posted a bunch of pics on my Facebook page, but I'll try to also share some of the recipes here over the next week or so. Get ready for some cookie porn, y'all!

First up, a holiday classic: gingerbread men!

For these, I slightly modified Isa's wonderful Gingerbread Cut-Out Cookies recipe on the PPK by reducing the sugar and oil slightly, and added about 1 Tbs of fresh ground ginger for some extra spicy oomph.

Here's the recipe with my modifications:

Gingerbread Cut-Out Cookies
(adapted from Isa's recipe)

1/4 cup canola oil
1/2 cup + 2Tbs sugar
1/4 cup molasses
1/4 cup plain soymilk
1Tbs fresh grated ginger

2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt

spice blend:
1/2 teaspoon each ground nutmeg, cloves and cinnamon
1 1/2 teaspoons ground ginger

In a large bowl whisk together oil sugar, molasses, soymilk, and fresh grated ginger. In a separate bowl, sift all the dry ingredients together, and then add to the wet ingredients. Mix til you get a stiff dough. Wrap in plastic and chill for at least an hour. When you are ready to bake, preheat your oven to 350F. Roll out the dough to about 1/4 inch thick and cut into shapes with cookie cutters. Poke holes for eyes with a chopstick and make smiley mouths with the edge of a teaspoon. Bake for 8 minutes for softer gingerbread cookies, and up to 11 minutes for crispier ones. Remove from oven and let cool on rack, before digging in~

Poor guy got decapitated. T'was a swift execution.

The only problem with trying so many cookie recipes is that I end up with way more sweets than I can eat myself, so I've been sharing them with friends and sneaking extra random cookies into orders I get from the bake shop. hehe. Sharing the love, but also indulging my compulsion to bake. Win-win!

And check out my hand-painted cookie gift boxes. :) Oh what fun~

Turkey-free Thanksgiving 2011

2011-11-29T22:06:00.002+09:00

I know my Thanksgiving meal blog post is a bit late, but the past few days have been a bit cr-razy. Lots of things going on and the other day my oven decided to crap out on me while I was baking some pumpkin bread. Let's just say that I had a bit of a melt-down, rushing around looking for a new oven and also trying to fix my beloved old one. So I was a bit stressed and crunched for time to do any blogging. But thankfully, I was able to get my trusty lil' convection oven fixed today and now it's running smoothly. It's certainly not the most high-tech oven, but we've been through a lot together and I know it so well that it's like my baby! Hopefully it will stay strong for me to crank out many more pumpkin loaves and cookies.

Anyway, back to Thanksgiving. On Saturday, I went over to Sean & Kia's place for thanksgiving dinner. This was the first time in a few years that I didn't host the dinner at my place. It was nice to let someone else stress out over the menu-planning and cooking for once. haha. But even if Kia was stressed, she didn't show it and did an amazing job. She put together a smorgasbord of vegan-awesome, complete with tofurky, pineapple-glazed ham, and pumpkin cheesecake. It was probably the most impressive homemade vegan thanksgiving meal I've ever had. She went above and beyond, especially in creating the seitan dishes that I would be too scared to attempt myself. Anyway, here's everything that we had to eat for our turkey-free Thanksgiving Feast:

To start, we each got a bowl of creamy veggie soup that tasted like it had smoked bacon in it. It was perfect as a soup, but was also doubled as a tasty gravy sauce for the mashed potatoes, seitan slices, and er... just about everything.

Perhaps the star of the meal was this stuffed tofurky roast. Looks amazing, no?

Kabocha gnocchi & asparagus with creamy sauce.

Button mushrooms filled with stuffing.

Mashed potatoes!

Vegan pineapple-glazed ham. "Wow" is all I have to say.

scones

Kabocha with lentil salad

The condiments: spinach pesto & homemade cranberry sauce.

And since I didn't want to go empty handed, I brought some green bean casserole! Green beans in Korea are generally super expensive (and hard to find), but I was able to get a big bunch at a reasonable price, at the Chinese market in my neighborhood. For the recipe, I kind of just winged it after looking at several vegan ones online. Since french fried onions don't exist in Korea, I just sprinkled the top with vegan breadcrumbs mixed with a teeny bit of melted nondairy butter, salt and pepper. I imagine it was slightly healthier than using the traditional deep fried onions.

Here's what I did:

{ Vegan Green Bean Casserole }
serves 6-8

500g green beans, chopped
1 tsp salt
a pot of water

1/2 Tbs olive oil
1 medium onion, diced
3-4 cloves of garlic, minced
2 cups mushrooms, sliced (I used button and enoki)
1/2 carrot, sliced into small pieces
1/2 tsp sage
1 tsp dried basil
1 tsp dried parsley
salt & pepper to taste
2-3 Tbs flour
1 cup water
1/2 cup soy milk (I used a sugar-free version)

1 cup vegan breadcrumbs
1/2 Tbs nondairy butter
pinch of salt & pepper

1. Boil a pot of water and add chopped green beans and salt. Cook until the green beans are tender but still slightly crunchy. Rinse and let drain in a collander.
2. Preheat oven to 400F.
3. In a medium-sized pot, heat up some olive oil and then add the onion, garlic, and mushrooms. Stir until the onions are translucent. Add carrots, green beans and herbs. Cook and stir for a few minutes.
4. Dissolve the flour in about 1 cup of water and pour into the pot, stirring as it thickens. Add soy milk and cover the pot as it cooks for a few more minutes, until the carrots are soft. If the sauce is too thick, add more water or soy milk. Transfer to a baking casserole dish.
5. In a small bowl, rub some vegan butter into the bread crumbs, with some salt and pepper. Toss a bit before sprinkling over the veggies in the casserole dish. Place in the oven for about 15 minutes, or until the breadcrumbs are brown and the sauce underneath is bubbling on the sides. That's about it! :)

Dayam hot vegan deliciousness on a plate.

X-treme close up of green bean casserole.

Dan brought some super yummy bean burger patties which were addictively good, especially when topped with Anna's sun-dried tomato spread.

Talk about a feast!! And that doesn't even include the desserts. Kia was on a mission to make all of us feel stuffed to the max, by serving up two different desserts, using her brand new copy of Vegan Pie in the Sky by Isa Chandra Moskowitz and Terry Hope Romero. I can't wait to get my hands on my own copy to complete the recipe book trilogy!

Pumpkin cheesecake...

...and chocolate pudding pie! Woahhhh~~

Anna baked this awesome apple crisp with some special ingredient that I can't remember the name of.... It was goooood!

My dessert sampler plate. Everything was delicious! The pumpkin cheesecake was really good, but I think my favorite was the chocolate pudding pie. It wasn't fully set yet so it fell apart a bit, but who cares, it was yuummmmy~ tasted like childhood.

I also brought along some gingerbread cookies for dessert. I used the recipe from the PPK, but reduced the oil and sugar quite a bit.

The after-effects.

The dogs also got some thanksgiving love. "Look stupid, Marcel! Gooood boy~" ^^

Well, by the end of the evening, I was completely stuffed to the brim. As always Kia & Sean were so generous in hosting this amazing gathering, and it was such a pleasure to hang out with some lovely friends. I definitely feel that I have a lot to be thankful for this year. Family, friends, my new apartment, my online bake shop, this blog, my readers and customers, delicious compassionate food, and good health.... grateful for everything.

Silk Soymilk!

2011-11-28T21:49:00.002+09:00

I found Silk soy milk at Sinsaegae Department store at the Express bus terminal, both chocolate and vanilla flavors! They only carry the small cartons and are quite expensive, but I know some people who are die-hard Silk lovers, so this one's for you. :)

Home-cookin': the good, bad, and downright ugry.

2011-11-24T16:08:00.004+09:00

Happy Thanksgiving!!!

Wow, it's so cold outside! Buggin 'ell! I was hoping the season would stay perpetually in fall, but no.... Winter had to stealthily sneak up from behind and deliver a roundhouse kick to our faces. I don't even know if that's even possible from behind, but whatever, it's coooold! It was so frigid yesterday that I officially pulled out my fake ugg boots to keep my feet cushy warm before heading out today. Mmm, toasty toes!

Anyhoo, enough chit-chat about the weather.... let's talk food.

Recently, I was amazed to learn that the FFM carries tempeh! I never noticed them before, because they are buried in the corner of one of the freezers in the back, amongst various frozen meat products.

I've been stocking up and eating this on a regular basis now. Protein, fiber, iron! All good shtuff.

With my first block, I made tempeh bacon using the recipe from Vegan Brunch. However, I left out a bunch of ingredients like the tomato paste and vegetable broth, and subbed agave syrup for maple syrup, and sesame oil for olive oil.

I'd actually never cooked tempeh before (only eaten it a few times in the US), so this was new territory for me. Yet even with all those omissions and substitutions, my bacon strips still came out yummy!

The taste and texture was actually more like ham/spam, but it was really good. Super salty, in a good way. I wanted to make a BLT sandwich with this, but didn't have any bread on me, so I ended up eating it with rice and banchans. I'll make a proper BLT next time~

Here's a tofu & veggie scramble.

Breakfast of oatmeal with chia seeds (ordered from iherb), pumpkin ddeok, pears and persimmon.

I've also been playing around with different baking recipes lately. And as is the case with experimenting, there are always a lot of flops and disappointments...

Apple muffins. They looked okay, but tasted bland because I forgot to add any spices.

It was desperately crying out for some cinnamon and nutmeg.

I also attempted a whole wheat carrot quickbread, but it turned out a bit dry and crumbly.... :(

back to the drawing board!

And how can I forget my failed persimmon muffins, which came out spectacularly flat and gummy on the inside. Persimmon season is ending, so I've kind of given up on this one. Maybe I'll try again next year.... :P

Oh, and don't even get me started on my attempt at the ever-so-popular microwave mug cake.

yeaaa.... we'll just leave it at that.

Happy Workspace 2012 Desk Calendar!

2011-11-22T18:07:00.001+09:00

My 2012 Calendars have arrived from the printer! Phew, I was a bit nervous that they wouldn't be done in time for the holiday season, but thankfully they were delivered today, a little ahead of schedule. This leaves plenty of time for them to be shipped anywhere in the world, before Christmas and New Years. :) And I'm so happy with the way they turned out!

side view. sturdy cardboard backing.

2012 full-year calendar. There's also a full calendar for 2013 on the last page.

Each month has a different color palate, and there is plenty of space to scribble down your important notes and birthdays.

Once the year is over, you can tear the pages out and hang the images on your wall, or turn them into cards. Recycling is encouraged! :)

Available for purchase on my Etsy shop.

Thank you for your interest and support! :)

Ahn Hyun Pil Healthy Buffet @ Daerim Station

2011-11-21T22:53:00.006+09:00

So it's been almost 2 months since I moved to the west side of Seoul. While I'm enjoying a lot of things over here, I also miss my old stomping grounds at Gunja. One of the biggest things I miss is being so close to the Achasan Loving Hut buffet! Now it's just so far that I don't want to sit on the subway that long to get there.

However, lucky for me, I found another veg*n buffet quite close to me! It's called 안현필 건강 밥상 (Ahn Hyun Pil Healthy Dining Table) and upstairs they hold health classes that teach community residents about holistic nutrition and the value of plant-based, natural, whole foods, organic diet. Originally, the buffet started out as a cafeteria for the students who attended the courses, but people enjoyed the food so much that they turned it into an actual restaurant.

Anyway, my mom was here the other week and so I dragged her there with me to check it out. As soon as we walked in, the owner ajuma greeted us with a warm smile. She also quickly walked us through the buffet line, letting us know where everything was, and explained the concept of the restaurant and their food values.

The spread isn't as plentiful and diverse as the Achasan LH, but eating here only costs 9,000 won so I reckon it's worth it! :)

All their greens are organic, they use whole wheat flour for their jeon pancakes, and they have healthy rice made from a mix of brown and wild rice.

They also aren't as veg-meat heavy like LH. There's only one wheat meat dish and the rest is just various vegan Korean dishes like japchae, mook, salads, soups, and kimchis.

Uncomplicated, fresh, natural food... just like it should be.

Fermented natto beans, vinegary soy beans, and dwenjang.

Even though it's a buffet which is normally associated with eating as much as your belly can handle, it's not the kind of place that promotes over-eating. They suggest that guests take their time to really savor the food and enjoy the meal, and they also ask that no food be wasted. Trust me, not a single morsel went to waste!

Lots of greens for rice-wrapping. Also, some salad with vegan dressing, natto and vinegary beans, and sea vegetables.

I'm actually not such a fan of natto... the sliminess is hard to get used to.

Pat juk! This wasn't the sweet version of patjuk, but just the regular, more savory type. Quite nice~~

Miyuk guk.

Whole wheat bread with some of their homemade syrup, seeds, and 5-bean powder. The ajuma suggested I eat the bread like this. :)

The bread was kept in a steamer so it was nice and warm and chewy~ I didn't really see the point of sprinkling the bean powder on top, but I did like their syrup and seed mix.

By the cash register, they have shelves carrying various veg*an foods like veg meat, ramen (not all are vegan though, so just double check), wheat crackers and snacks, various flours, dry noodles, organic sugar, etc.

Directions to Ahn Hyun Pil:
Daerim Station, Line 2 & 7. Go out Exit 2 and go down the first road on your left. Walk a few minutes, pass some food markets, and the restaurant will be on your left. 4-5 minute walk from station exit.

Birthday yums

2011-11-20T08:39:00.001+09:00

Thank you everyone for your all your birthday wishes and amazing comments on the postcard giveaway. Not only did you share your favorite veggie dishes and your locations around the world, but you also wrote some incredibly touching words of encouragement. Sometimes I second-guess what I'm doing, lose confidence, and think myself into a funk, but then you guys overwhelm me with goodwill and put a smile on my face. Really, thank you! :)

Well, I had a wonderful birthday. As I shared in my previous post, I went down to Cheonan to hang out with family first. My mom was the best and put together a delicious lunch for us and my aunt who also came over to celebrate. If anyone were to ask what I'd want for my last meal, it would look something like this:

Good ol' Korean food!

Bowl of hot miyuk-guk (sea vegetable soup). This is a traditional birthday soup for Koreans, but actually, I didn't grow up eating this on my birthdays because I used to hate seaweed! But then I went vegan, learned about plant nutrition, opened my mind, and now I love it. :)

Japchae noodles.

Fresh baby greens from my parent's indoor farm. haha. Can't believe the veranda farming is still going strong.

Vegan bulgogi made with soy meat, bought from here. Recipe here. I find it quite amusing that my mom, who's not vegetarian, is better at cooking tvp than me. Go umma!

Vegan chong-gak kimchi.

Dessert: persimmons, clementines, coffee.

Oh, and although I said I might not get around to baking a vegan birthday cake for myself, the thought of having a cake-less birthday was depressing, so for the sake of tradition, I (with the help of my mom and aunt) baked a simple vanilla sheet cake. Once it was done, we sliced it up and spread raspberry jam between the layers:

Happy birthday to me.

I also topped it with some lemony tofu cream and a frozen strawberry from my mom's freezer. I didn't blend the cream long enough so it was a wee bit lumpy, but it was a nice way to top everything off.

Nothin like a hunka birthday cake to ease the pain of getting older.

Later in the afternoon, I rushed back to Seoul to partake in a truly scrumptious dinner at Taj: Taste of India, with some of my favorite people. I really like this Indian restaurant. It's on the pricier side, but it's worth it for the classy, romantic ambiance, excellent service, vegan-friendly menu and staff. Oh, and their food is always delicious.

Yellow dal & spinach curry (no cream, cheese, etc), enjoyed with many baskets of vegan roti.

Mushroom & potato curry.

As for birthday loot, my uncle was so generous and bought a huge box of clementines for me. Fresh fruit: what an awesome pressie! I also got some lovely non-edible presents from both family and friends such as a beautiful wooden tray, body lotions, tea, pajamas, and a donation to the Humane Society made in my name. :) Love them all.

And check out these bunny socks I got! I shall be rockin' these til they get stinky and holey.

A birthday, a giveaway, & a recipe!

2011-11-18T11:12:00.003+09:00

Guess what. Today is my birthday! Another year wiser. :)

To celebrate my aging, I'd like to do a small birthday giveaway on my Facebook page, for my 10-pack of art postcards. All you have to do is go to this wall post and write your favorite vegan dish and where you're from. Then I'll pick two random winners, one person in Korea, and one overseas.

The giveaway will end at midnight tonight, so no dilly-dallying! Hop to it! :)

Anyway, not too much planned for this day~ I'm currently in Cheonan with my parents, and since it's my sister's birthday today too, we just did a family skype-chat which was nice. And then later this afternoon, I'll go back to Seoul for a mini birthday dinner with some close friends. I'm keeping things small and simple this year. I don't even know if I'll have time to make my vegan birthday cake! We shall see...

Anyway, here's a recipe for no-bake Peanut Butter Rice Krispie treats that I made last week. They're ridiculously easy and quick to put together. They're also super addicting so beware! I found that most online recipes for these bars are pretty similar, but here's what I did:

PB Rice Krispie Bars

3/4 cup sugar
3/4 cup brown rice syrup
3/4 cup smooth peanut butter
1/2 Tbs non-dairy margarine
6 cups rice krispie cereal
melted dark chocolate for topping (optional)

Grease a 9 x 13 inch pan with some oil. In a non-stick pan over medium heat, melt the sugar, syrup, peanut butter, and margarine just until it begins to simmer. Remove from heat and add rice krispies. Stir and transfer to a greased pan, pressing down firmly with a spatula or your fingers. Cover with melted chocolate (optional, but highly reccommended), and let cool before slicing and serving. Enjoy!

For those in Korea, make sure you get the right kind of rice cereal-- not the soft, styrofoam-textured ones that those ajushis sell by the street. Those don't work because they're not crispy at all. However, you can get rice krispie-type cereal at Homeplus, or the Foreign Food Mart in Itaewon. You can also get brown rice cereal online like GMarket, which would make these bars healthier.

Mmm... takes me back to childhood~

Okee dokes, that's all for today! Don't forget to sign up for my postcard giveaway!

Tootleoo~

Learning to love & respect this veggie-fueled body

2011-11-15T19:21:00.004+09:00

Last Saturday, a couple friends and I went to check out the Body Worlds & the Cycle of Life exhibition that is going on at The War Memorial of Korea, near Samgakji Station. For those who have not heard of this exhibit before, it's shows real human bodies that have been preserved though a process called 'plastination.' I'd only seen a few pics of this famous exhibition before and was actually rather scared to see it in-person (I'm a woos, remember?), but curiosity won out, and in the end I was really glad I went! It was pretty incredible. You could see everything: bones, muscle, tendons, blood vessels, organs, hair, nails.... fetuses in different stages of gestation, cross-sections of entire body parts, and bodies arranged in various positions.

The bodies actually really didn't seem real and I kept having to remind myself that I was looking at an actual human being that once lived a real life. The exhibition wasn't that big but I thought it was really interesting and I came away with not only a new sense of wonder for the human form in general, but also a new-found respect for my own body. I feel that so often we (especially women) are quick to critique all of our bodily flaws. But seeing this show was a reminder to focus on the strength of my body and its ability to function the way it does, and to treat it with respect and kindness. It's interesting how these stripped-down, plastinated figures can say so much about the beauty and wonder of our physicality. Anyway... not to bore you guys, but I thought it was a great exhibit and I recommend checking it out whether you're in Seoul, or when the show comes to a place near you.

And now onto some weekend eats:

After the exhibit, we walked to Noksapyeong/Itaewon and had dinner at Wang Thai. They have an awesome vegetarian menu with plenty of vegan options (see this post). I got their Vegetable Sweet & Sour dish (10,000?). It was lovely~~ I'm usually not a fan of cooked pineapples, but I actually enjoyed them in this dish.

Over the weekend, a handful of friends got together at Chris' place just to veg-out, watch movies, and eat snacks. My goodness, there was so much food that all the snacking turned into very filling dinner. There was a seemingly bottomless supply of nachos and salsa, lots of wine, crackers, nuts and raisins, and a huge pot of this:

Yunseo whipped up some bombass vegan ddeokbokki! She actually bought vegan odeng (fish cakes) at the Thien Dang Loving Hut and it was a great addition.

I haven't had this classic street-food dish in ages because almost all street vendors cook it with the fish cakes and hardboiled eggs mixed in. And Yunseo did an amazing job with her vegan version- it was yummmyyy~ :) I just love how nowadays practically everything and anything can be made cruelty-free and still taste delicious!

While Yunseo was at Thien Dang Loving Hut, she also grabbed a box of pre-made vegan spicy chickin' wings, made of texturized soy protein. We just popped them in the microwave for a sec before digging in.

Boom. Vegan chickin' wings. They look pretty amazing, eh?

Taste-wise, they were pretty decent too~ The texture was somewhat 'airy' (?) and it was a bit too oily for my liking, but I s'pose that's only being true to the original. hehe. I did enjoy the salty, spicy, sweet bbq sauce though! It was definitely a novelty to eat vegan chikin' wings. Now if only we had some vegan ranch dressing....

My small contribution was some olive focaccia bread from Bakersfield in Gangnam, and these homemade peanut butter rice krispie squares with melted chocolate on top. :) A little sugar to balance all the salty-spiciness and to make our movie-grub complete. Perhaps it wasn't the most nutrient-dense or diverse spread, but it was all plant-based, cruelty-free, and my body (read: my tummy) was happy.

Anyway, my body, mind, and soul were all fed and well-satisfied this weekend. Life is good and I wish the same for all my readers! I'm sending happy thoughts your way~ nite nite!

O Yori restaurant's vegetarian options~

2011-11-13T13:42:00.003+09:00

Had dinner at O Yori restaurant with Kia. It's been forever since my last visit and they've added some new vegetarian items to their menu since then.

One of their newer vegan items is their Dwenjang Vegetable Ramen (11,000 won). It came out in a very large bowl with a good amount of veggies such as bok choi, mung bean sprouts, two different mushrooms, scallions, and onions.

But the best part was definitely the super tasty dwenjang soup which was thick and salty like ramen soups should be. It was perfect for a chilly day and I definitely slurped up every drop!

Kia got their 'Japanese-style mushroom on rice.' The original dish comes with beef, but you can get it veganized (no cows, soy sauce instead of oyster sauce) for 1,000 cheaper. It was a pretty simple dish but I think Kia enjoyed it~!

Miso soup and sweet pickled radish and purple cabbage on the side.

Here's their new vegetarian menu.

They also have a Japanese curry which normally comes with chicken, but it can be veganized if you ask (9,000 won). They also still have their delicious Tofu Steak on their menu, in all it's crispy-crust glory. It's a little pricier than their other dishes and it's quite a lot of tofu for one person, but if you have a dining partner I highly recommend it!

Overall, it was a lovely dining experience and I was happy to see that O Yori is still going strong and serving up some great veggie fare, especially with all the intense restaurant competition in Hongdae/Hapjeong. Definitely check out this classy restaurant if you're in the area. The ambiance is very clean, modern, and simple, and they have English-speaking staff who can help accommodate your needs.

Check website for menu, directions, and opening hours.

Triple-Eleven, babyyy~

2011-11-11T19:42:00.011+09:00

Today is Nov 11 which means Pepero Day. And this year, it's 11-11-11, or as Koreans have dubbed it, "Millennium Pepero Day"! This annual commercial event seems to get bigger and bigger every time, but this year, it might as well be a national holiday. Supermarkets, convenience stores, cafes and bakeries have gone totally bonkers with their Pepero-theme displays and no one can avoid or escape these cookie sticks. If you thought Pepero days were ridiculous in the past, this year, it's Pepero day on crack.

I know this is ultimately just a gimmicky business strategy by Lotte, and like Valentine's day it promotes the idea that you need to buy 'stuff' in order to tell people you love them. However,I gotta admit that it's pretty brilliant marketing on their part and I've kind of gotten sucked into all the hype. A day where you get to give and receive chocolate-covered cookies... who wouldn't want to participate!

However, instead of giving Lotte my hard-earned money by buying their non-vegan pepero, I decided to 'stick' it to the man by making my own cruelty-free version. I did this last year too, but this time I used a slightly different recipe.

The recipe for the cookie part is actually the recipe for my basic homemade crackers. They're really easy to make and don't require many ingredients. You could even substitute the soy milk with just water if you wanted.

Vegan Stick-it-to-the-Pepero-Man! Sticks

3/4 cup all purpose flour
1/4 cup whole wheat flour
1 1/2 Tbs sugar
pinch of salt
2 Tbs grape seed oil
2 Tbs soy milk

1/3 cup dark chocolate chips
toppings: chopped nuts, fruit, coconut shreds, sprinkles, etc

Preheat oven to 170C. Sift and mix all dry ingredients together. Add the oil and rub it into the flour with your fingers until you get a coarse sandy texture. Add the soy milk (or water) and mix until it comes together in a ball. If it is too sticky, add a bit more flour by the teaspoon, and if it is too dry add a little more soy milk. On parchment paper, roll out the dough to about 4mm thick. Next, use a knife to score lines through the dough. Transfer the whole parchment paper with dough onto a cookie sheet and bake for about 15 minutes, or until it is slightly browned and crunchy. Break the pieces apart and let cool.

Prepare your toppings by chopping some nuts and/or dried fruit into small pieces. Next, melt your chocolate in a double boiler or microwave. Hold one end of a cookie stick and use a spoon or spatula to cover the cookie in a thin layer of chocolate, before rolling it in the toppings.

Lay the sticks on sheet of parchment paper and leave for about an hour for the chocolate to cool and set.

Package them up and give to all your friends on Pepero day. :)

You could use any toppings you like, but here's my vegan pepero trifecta:

Coconut

'The Classic'

Cranberry-Almond

The cookie part doesn't have too much flavor or sweetness, but the chocolate and various toppings make up for that. It's really all about the crunch and the fun of biting into the long stick. :P

Pepero Day or not, any reason to bake cookies and cover them in chocolate is good in my books.

I know the day's almost over here in Korea, but if you're on the other side of the world, it's not too late to make your own vegan pepero sticks and celebrate this unique date. Happy 11-11-11 day!

Almond Butter Oatmeal Cookies!

2011-11-08T18:21:00.002+09:00

As I type, I'm enjoying a mug of hot chocolate with a yummy almond butter oatmeal cookie! Ahhh, I feel all cozy and warm inside~~

I've baked these cookies a few times now and they may be my new favorite cookie. The recipe is based on my peanut butter oatmeal cookies I posted here, but I just switched out the peanut butter for the almond butter that I got recently, and also slightly reduced the sugar.

The nuttiness of the roasted almonds simply can't be beat and I love the chewiness of the oatmeal. And what's great is that these cookies aren't too sweet or oily, but they still have loads of flavor and tasty deliciousness.

Almond Butter Oatmeal Cookies
makes 24-26 cookies

1/3 cup natural, smooth roasted almond butter
1 Tbs non dairy butter
2/3 cup organic sugar (can use slightly less)
1/3 cup soy milk
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 tsp almond extract
1 cup all purpose flour
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1 1/2 cup rolled oats
1/4 cup chopped almonds

Method:

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
In a mixing bowl, whisk together the almond butter, non dairy butter, sugar, milk, and vanilla extract until everything is smooth and creamy.
In another bowl, sift together flour, soda and salt. Add the rolled oats.
Combine the wet with the dry, and mix until just incorporated. Stir in the chopped almonds.
Drop large spoonfuls of cookie dough onto baking sheet and slightly flatten with your fingers.
Bake for 10-12 minutes, or until set.
Remove sheet from oven and let cool on tray for 5 minutes before transferring to a cookie rack.

Mmm! big cookieee!

They've got a little bit of everything: crunchy nuts, crispy edges, chewy oatmeal, protein and healthy fat from the almonds, and a little sugar to satisfy that sweet tooth. Seriously, I think these are my new favorite cookies. And for those in Korea, I've temporarily added them to my online bake shop website! Better order soon though, before my almond butter supply runs out!

Here's a previous batch I made with just one almond lodged in the center. :)

Anyway, after baking cookies this morning, I spent pretty much the rest of the day painting and scanning things for my 2012 calendar that I'm working on! :)

Remember last year's calendar? Yeupp, i'm doing it again! However, I'm a little behind schedule this year... It's already almost mid-November and time is running like a faucet, so hopefully I can bust this thing out in the next few days and have it all done, printed, and ready for purchase sometime next week. Fingers crossed! :)

Feel. Good.

2011-11-04T17:30:00.002+09:00

If anyone's interested, here are some things I've been up to lately:

Baking! Thank you to everyone who has ordered and shared goodies with friends and coworkers, I appreciate your support!!. ^^

Random cookie. I bought a set of cookie alphabet stamps at the Bakery Fair, so I tested them out on a naked thin mint cookie (without chocolate coating).

I shopped at Gyahaha (갸하하), one of my fave vintage stores in Hongdae.

Next, I've returned to one of my favorite past times: cafe-exploring in Hongdae. I wish I could chill at a Hongdae cafe every day, but when one Americano costs around 5,000 or more, that's just not gonna happen.

Lilian and I also grabbed dinner at a random Korean restaurant where we asked the ajuma to make vegan dwenjang jjigye- and she did! For me, this is the ultimate comfort food: rice, jjigye, and banchans. I'm so Korean.

Last week, I also met up with Janice who flew in from Cali, and she surprised me with two huge jars of agave syrup and almond butter!! They don't look that big here in the photo, but trust me, they are the large versions. I've been enjoying the almond butter immensely- she know me too well.

Here's a shot of today's breakfast featuring the almond butter. Hot oatmeal with apple chunks, dried jujube slices, almond slices, and a dollop of almond butter.

This was yesterday's lunch: rice noodles sauteed with various veggies, and some vegan hotdog franks that I got at Thien Dang Loving Hut a few days ago.

I also recently visited Boramae park which is walking distance from my house. A smallish park, but clean and peaceful~

Last but not least, whenever I have a chunk of free time, I've been trying to draw or paint. Multi-tasking is not my forte, and with various other things going on these days, it's hard to get myself to sit down and paint for a solid couple hours. Must work on that....

Here's a commissioned owl painting I did last month. i love painting owls~ heehee

Well, that just about sums up my life these days. Not very eventful or exciting, but it's a content life. :) ta ta for now!~~

Pho & cookies

2011-11-03T14:00:00.002+09:00

Went to Thien Dang Loving Hut last night. Believe it or not, this was only my second visit to this LH branch, and ever since I heard that they added pho to their menu, I'd been meaning to return! I looove pho from the bottom of my heart and I still get cravings for the amazing vegan pho I had at Cali last year, so it's a bit of an understatement to say that I was excited to try Thien Dang's version.

Pho (8,000 won)

So how was it? Hm... it was aiight. Okay, to be honest, it was a bit of a miss for me. I really wanted to like it, but the rice noodles were too thick, bloated, and soft that they kept breaking apart. The soup also wasn't very flavorful and they didn't have hoisin or sriracha sauce on the side to make the pho experience complete. I know I shouldn't expect so much since they're not a specialized pho restaurant, and perhaps my past vegan pho experience has set the bar too high, but still... There was only one lady in the kitchen doing everything from taking orders to cooking, so I think my dish ended up sitting on the counter for some time before serving. Moreover, I think pho noodles really ought to be eaten with rounder plastic chopsticks that won't cut into the noodles the way flat metal chopsticks do. Overall, the whole thing was just a bit awkward to eat. But on a positive note, the veg meat slices were a nice addition and the portion was quite large. And as the only restaurant in Seoul with vegan pho, I gotta give them props. Next time though, I think I'll stick to their rice dishes, or their burger which is juicy delicious. Yunseo and Chris ordered different dishes which they both said they enjoyed.

Yunseo ordered the Tomato spaghetti

Chris got the Tom Yum Goong with rice noodles.

the sides

Anywayyy~ After dinner, we ended up hanging out at my place. My first house guests (besides my parents)! Chris offered to hook up my new wireless router for me (I'm technologically-challenged), so while he was busy doing that, I helped Yunseo bake her first ever batch of cookies!

We picked the Cherry Almond Cookies recipe from VCIYCJ which is super easy since they're just drop cookies, but we replaced the cherries with cranberries. The recipe says it yields 2 dozen cookies, but I guess we made ours a little bigger and got 16.

As Yunseo's first cookie-baking experience, she did an awesome job. They turned out delicious!

Slightly firm and crispy on the edges yet chewy and soft on the inside. Chris gave his manly stamp of approval by gobbling down about five cookies.

So yea, what could be better than hanging out with chingus at home, blasting some tunes and baking late-night vegan cookies? Oh, and for the first time in my life, I have wifi in my own home! Wooottt~! Now i can take my laptop outside on the patio and blog from there~~ I've entered the twenty-first century. :)

Seoul International Bakery Fair

2011-11-02T17:46:00.002+09:00

On Saturday Yunseo and I checked out the 15th Annual Seoul International Bakery Fair at COEX. These kinds of events at coex are always crowded, but they're busier on weekends, and especially when they involve food... And since I'm just a little bit interested in baking, I had to go check it out. Being surrounded by so many baking ingredients, supplies, baking academies, and cafes, was like me being in a candy shop. There was a ton of things to see and I definitely came away with some inspiration for my own mini online bake shop. hehe. Anyway, here are some scenes from the event:

A bunch of industrial-sized ovens and mixers on display. Imagine having one of these in your kitchen!

French bakers handing out macaron samples. I had to battle some hardcore ajumas just to get close enough to take this photo.

Ingredient-tasting

Various types of coconut shreds

Breads made from different grains

A frozen-fruit company.

Fancy cakes on display

There were also several bakery-cafes in the arena and they all had loooong lines of customers waiting to buy goodies.

designer chocolates!

Unfortunately, most of the stuff there wasn't vegan so I didn't get to do as much tasting as everyone else. Booo~

cake decorating

shelves of muffin cups & poundcake molds

There was also a baking competition on one side of the building, where a bunch of apprentice bakers had their goods on display for judging in different categories.

breads

bread and pastries

chocolates

sugar art

fondant decorating

Bunny's in the background. :)

Well, it was a lot of fun and I think I got a feel for what's trendy in the baking business these days... haha. And even though I could probably find everything at Bangsan baking market, I still bought a couple small items while there. Good times!

Scary Movie Night!!!

2011-10-31T20:58:00.006+09:00

Wow, it's been a while since my last post! Apologies for the long pause. Well, today is the last day of October which means Vegan MoFo has come to an end! I hang my head in shame over how little blogging in did this month for MoFo. But instead, I'm sending out virtual props and high-fives to all my fellow veg bloggers who showed the world that vegans don't live on carrot sticks and tofu alone. You guys blogged some crazy, impressive, cruelty-free deliciousness. Well done you!

Anywayy~ Since it was Halloween weekend, on Friday a couple of us gals got together at Kia's place for a scary movie night!

I am seriously the worst at watching scary movies. I'll never forget in college how I couldn't sleep for about a week after watching that zombie movie 'I Am Legend' with Will Smith, and I had to sleep in my roommate's bed! I usually avoid horror flicks at all costs, but this time, I decided to be brave and and embrace the 'scary.' First, we watched the classic 'The Exorcist' and later we also watched Francis Ford Coppola's version of 'Dracula.' Omg. I think I covered my eyes for about half of 'The Exorcist.' Freaked me out!! Everyone else had already seen it before, so I got them to warn me when the scariest parts were gonna happen. But still.... certain scenes and sounds.... aghhh, i don't want to think about it... moving on!

For movie-noshing, Kia whipped up three different vegan flavors of popcorn (cheezy-garlic, smoked chilli, and butter-salt), and a batch of soft, chewy chocolate chip cookies.

cookies cooling on the rack.

mulled wine!

Dogs went crazy for some popcorn! Anyhoo, I'm proud to say that I survived the night and actually didn't have any nightmares after (at least not yet). I guess I've gotten a little less sensitive with age... haha.

Happy Halloween!! I didn't dress up this time, but here's me as a dark unicorn from last year.

What is the scariest film you've ever seen?

Clementine Cranberry Muffins

2011-10-26T16:34:00.003+09:00

When I first started experimenting with vegan baking, muffins were the first things I learned to bake and got hooked on. It was actually the only thing I baked on a regular basis. But after a while, I started branching out and trying other things like cookies and quick breads, so the humble muffin got neglected and left on the wayside. However, I find that whenever temperatures dip, I start baking muffins again, and the past two weeks have been no exception. All I want for breakfast these days is warm, fresh-outta-the oven muffins, so yesterday, I woke up and baked some seasonal Clementine Cranberry muffins! It's funny how a craving will hit you and won't shake itself off until it has been satisfied.

These muffins were inspired by a huge bag of clementines I got at my local market. I used the Orange Cranberry Nut Muffin recipe from Vegan Brunch by Isa, but substituted fresh clementines instead of oranges, and omitted the pecans. I got 10 muffins instead of 12... I guess I make my muffins bigger. hehe.

After using my microplane grater for the zest, I peeled the clementines and got as much of the white membranes off, and then just pureed them into a thick pulpy juice with my hand immersion blender.

You could probably just squeeze the clementines to get pulp-free juice, but I figured it would get a bit messy doing that. Besides, a little extra fiber ain't gonna hurt anyone.

The combination of clementines with cranberries was delicious!

Soft crumb with a slight crackly, crisp top.

Clementine-Cranberry Muffins
(adapted from this recipe by Isa Chandra)
makes 10-12 muffins

2 cups all purpose flour
2/3 cups sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup fresh clementine juice (I included pulp)
1/2 cup canola oil
2 tablespoons clementine zest
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
1/4 teaspoon almond extract
1/2 cups dry cranberries

Preheat oven to 375 F. Lightly grease a muffin tin. In a large mixing bowl, mix together flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Make a well in the center and add canola oil, clementine juice, zest and vanilla. Mix just until all wet ingredients are moistened. About 1/2 way through mixing add the cranberries. Fill muffin tins 3/4 full and bake for 23 to 27 minutes, until lightly browned on top and a toothpick or knife inserted through the center comes out clean. When cool enough to handle, transfer to cooling racks to cool completely.

These days I've been having breakfast outside onto my patio every morning. The temperature is pretty chilly, but once the sun is shining strong, it's not bad. I even made this make-shift patio table out of found materials, so now I can do practically everything outside. Journal, paint, blog, read.... it's glorious. I'm really gonna miss doing this once winter hits full-force.

And then I saw an old grandma come out on the rooftop of my neighboring building to hang her laundry, so I shared two muffins with her. :) Our buildings are close enough that I can put the muffins on a tray and with a little stretching from both sides, the muffins can cross the divide. Wouldn't it be tragic if they fell into the crevasse? Anyway, it felt good to spread some vegan muffin love... In my previous apartment, I didn't get to know a single neighbor aside from my landlord's family who lived right above me. I find that most people living in villas and one-room apartments tend to just stick to themselves and hide in their tiny cubby holes, but this time, I'm gonna try to get to know the people around me.

Perhaps I should go door to door handing out muffins. Who could refuse a humble loveable muffin, right?

And while we're talking about muffins, here are some banana walnut-choc chip ones I made recently.

Woops. I may have filled the muffin cup just a tad too much.

Atomic banana muffin explosion!

A muffin a day, keeps the blues away.

What's your favorite muffin flava?

Songnisan in the Fall

2011-10-24T14:59:00.007+09:00

For the past 2 years or so, my parents have been wanting to visit Mt. Songni-san in the fall because it's pretty famous for its beautiful autumn colors. However, we were always either too busy or we missed the peak fall foliage period, so we never got around to going. However, amazingly, this year we set the date like a month in advance, stuck to our commitment, and made it happen! My uncle and aunt who recently moved back to Korea from Brasil also joined us which was nice.

The changing leaves and their bright autumn colors were so gorgeous.

Being in the middle of such natural beauty never fails to recharge my batteries and inspire new passion for life!

Leaves, the 'rents, and a tiny bug.

Can't image a more perfect coffee break spot.

I love trees!!!

The hiking course we picked was about 3.5km and it wasn't too steep or difficult, but it was still a quad workout. My parents and relatives were too tired to go the whole way, but I was determined to get to the top!

Soon all the colorful trees turned into rocky boulders and at the very peak there was a steep metal staircase that led to a small look-out point, where you could see a 360-degree view. Climbing the stairs on the side of the rock was a bit scary because it was so exposed and the strong winds made me feel like I might get blown off.

The view from the top. Awesome.

I love that all you can see is layers and layers of mountains, far into the distance. These photos don't really do the actual scene justice. It was much more impressive in person.

Here's a panoramic view that I stitched together out of multiple photos. Click here for larger view.

Unfortunately, it was really windy and cold at the peak and I wasn't dressed warmly enough, so I just snapped some photos and made my way back down. I didn't time myself from the start, but I think it took about 1:20 hours to get to the top, and another hour coming back down.

By the time I met up with everyone else and returned to the bottom, I was pretty low on energy and needed fuel. So en-route to lunch, I munched on a vegan banana muffin that I baked for our trip and a clementine.

For lunch, we popped into a random Korean restaurant by the road. I got sanchae bibimbab.

I was really hungry after all that hiking and this totally hit the spot. I usually like lots of fresh lettuce in bibimbab, but this was amazing with all cooked, seasoned wild greens, a squeeze of sesame seed oil, and a dollop of gochujang. It could've been my hunger talking, but this bibimbab was just so good! Deliciously memorable.

The banch' spread.

After lunch, we hit the road and headed to the main side of Songnisan National Park.

map of Songnisan National Park

There were a lot more people here, just taking a leisurely stroll~

I know nature shots tend to be a bit boring, but I gotta post these because I just love trees in the fall!

At Songnisan, there's also a large Buddhist temple called 'Beopjusa,' and on these grounds, there's a gold-plated Buddha statue (Cheongdong mireuk bul) which is apparently the tallest in the world!

Woah.

Towering over everything!

me & a big slab of rock.

More trees! So colorful!

stacks of wishes

Moss-covered squirrel sculptures, clinging to trees.

Where am i?

Along the road leading to the National Park, there were plenty of restaurants for hungry hikers to unwind and relax at.

dong-dong ju (동동주). A type of traditional rice liquor, similar to makkgeolli.

There were also lots of farmers selling local, seasonal fruit and veggies for people to take home as edible souvenirs. Ofcourse we took a sack of persimmons. :)

Fresh and dry jujube dates!

Crunchy, sweet, and delicious.

Snack cart. Yay!

Corn and ddeok rice cakes on a stick.

Roasted chestnuts!

Gosh, there is so much great food in the fall~

Loads of dried edibles like strange roots and gogi berries...

... and bundles of dried wild mountain greens.

traditional, Korean knick-knacks.

Mid-afternoon snack: clementines and chestnuts.

Anywayyy~ before we knew it, the sun was starting to set and it was time to head home. I was pretty pooped by the end of the day- traveling and sight-seeing is hard work! Really though, every time I explore a new part of Korea, I'm impressed and moved by all the beauty this small country has to offer. I recommend everyone go hiking this fall, before all the leaves disappear! :)

Fell + Cole @ Hongdae

2011-10-23T17:23:00.003+09:00

I hope I'm not boring you with all these Hongdae posts, but there are just so many interesting veg-friendly places to blog about in this part of Seoul.

Last week, I got tipped off to a new ice-cream joint in Hongdae called Fell + Cole, and was told that they have vegan sorbet! I was there the next day.

You know you're somewhere special when one of their ice cream flavors is called "Darth Vader." :)

Cute halloween decorations~ I love it when Korean businesses get into the halloween spirit!

Apparently, the owner picked up the skills to make gastronomic ice cream when he lived in San Francisco. He is really kind, friendly, and speaks perfect English. The whole place is very foreigner-friendly~ And even though this place has a flair for wacky flavor combinations and prides itself on its use of high-quality ingredients, the interior and staff behind the counter are down-to-earth and unpretentious. Oh, and as soon as I told them I was vegan, they wasted no time in giving me sample spoons of all the dairy-free options!

I got to taste four different vegan sorbet flavors that they had in-stock that day: lemon, blueberry-banana, strawberry wine & szechuan pepper, and red wine & coke. Although sorbet is meant to be just fruit and sweetened water, this is Korea and often times vegan things are unveganized for no good reason, so it's nice that Fell + Cole knows what it's doing in the sorbet department.

In the end, I picked this Strawberry wine and Szechuan pepper sorbet (4,200 won). Perhaps a tad pricey, but delicious! The tiny pepper bits added a unique, slightly bitter edge to the overall sweet strawberry wine.

Lilian and I enjoying our cold treats. :)

Visit Fell + Cole's Facebook page for info & directions.

Vegan Banana Cream Cake @ Cafe Harunohee

2011-10-20T21:13:00.003+09:00

While I was living at Gunja station, Cafe Harunohee was always my go-to coffee shop. Now that I'm all the way on the other side of the city, I miss going there and just hanging out with Minju and the other workers. But lucky for me, it looks like I'll be making regular trips to Harunohee because I'm going to be stocking the cafe with baked goods again! Check out the newest cruelty-free item on the fall menu:

Banana Cream Cake! This is a vegan banana chocolate-chip walnut muffin that has been sliced in half and filled with non-dairy whipped cream and fresh banana slices, and then topped with more cream along with a sprinkling of dark chocolate shavings.

It's a banana cream pie, in cake-form.

There will also be various cookies/biscotti for sale from the Alien's Day Out bake shop!

So wat you waitin' for. Treat yo self to some vegan banana cream cake and cookies, while sippin' on a soy sweet potato latte~

(haha, love this clip, but just ignore the part about the "fine leather goods" hehe.)

Directions to Harunohee Cafe:
Gunja Station, Line 5&7, Exit 6. Walk straight for about 7 minutes. The cafe will be on your left.
Children's Grand Park Station, Line 7, Exit 1. Walk straight for about 7 minutes. The cafe will be on your right.
Tel: 02-453-0508
Hours: 11am-11pm

October Artisan Boulangerie

2011-10-19T11:50:00.003+09:00

New favorite bakery in Hapjeong: October Artisan Boulangerie!

Love the interior. Reminds me of all those bakeries I visited in Pareee~

It's got a good selection of animal-free breads and the lady at the counter is vegan-savvy in that she recognized the word 'vegan' and said that they get quite a lot of people coming in with specific dietary restrictions. She was also helpful in pointing out several options, free of milk, butter, cheese, lard, egg, etc:

Three different vegan focaccia breads: basil, button mushroom, and olive focaccia.

The mushroom one looks especially juicy and delicious...

These three rustic French breads in the center were all vegan.

Levant

Ficelle bread

Campagne bread

More vegan options:

Looks so crispy good!

Plain ciabatta

Ciabatta with a Mediterranean twist? Yes please~!

I'm just gonna go ahead and say that this was the best ciabatta bread I've had in Korea. It was ridiculously soft and pillowly. I just wanted to take a nap on it...

... but I used my better judgment and instead turned it into a sammich for dinner with sauteed spinach, mushrooms, bell peppers, and pan-fried smokey tofu.

Here's what I did:

For the tofu:
2 thin slices of tofu
1/2 tsp liquid smoke
1/2 tsp crushed fennel seeds
salt & pepper, to taste
1/2 tsp olive oil (for pan frying)

Pat your tofu dry with a paper towel to soak up as much water as you can. Next, sprinkle some liquid smoke, crushed fennel seeds, salt and pepper on top. Heat some olive oil in a nonstick skillet, over medium heat, and then place the tofu in the pan, cooking on both sides until it is browned and slightly crispy. Remove from pan and set aside.

For the veggie filling:
1/2 tsp olive oil
1 garlic clove
1/4 cup mushrooms
1/2 of a red or green bell pepper, sliced thin
1/2 tsp dried basil
1/2 tsp dried parsley
salt & pepper to taste
handful of spinach leaves, washed and drained

In the same non-stick pan, heat a little more olive oil over medium-high, then add the garlic, mushrooms and bell pepper slices. Toss until they are fully cooked and the mushrooms are nicely browned. I like to cook them until they are even slightly charred... hehe. Add seasonings and toss for a minute more. Next, add the spinach and toss quickly, just until the leaves are wilted, before removing from the heat (less than one minute). Finally, assemble your sandwich with the veggies, the pan-fried tofu, and whatever other condiments you desire. Enjoy!

The only thing missing was some mustard spread. Must add that to my shopping list.

dinner: scrumptious sammich with crunchy apples for dessert.

Seriously, best sandwich I've made in a long time, thanks to October Bakery!

Anyway, I think October is my new favorite bakery in the Hongdae/Hapjeong area. It's bigger than Paul & Paulina, has a greater variety of breads, more vegan options, and there are tables inside as well as outdoor seating. You can also order a steaming hot coffee to enjoy with your breakfast baguette.

So go check out October,... in October! :)

Directions:
Hapjeong Station, Line 6&2. Come out Exit 5 and turn right at the 'Giant' bike store. Walk straight for 5-7 minutes and October will be on your left.
See Google Map.

서울시 마포구 서교동 399-24
02-322-7882

Random eats & Bunny's glamorshots

2011-10-17T21:04:00.003+09:00

Here are a few things I've eaten lately:

On Friday, I slept over at my friend Rachel's house, and we had a very healthy midnight snack of fruit while watching a Korean rom-com! Not your typical sleep-over snackage, but it was good~ :)

Then the following morning, we were too lazy to go outside for lunch, so we ended up ordering-in. I got a bowl of pat-juk (red bean porridge). It was okay... definitely had too much rice in it and not enough beans. My mom makes the best patjuk, for sure.

On Saturday, I also attended my good friend Dan's wedding. Can't believe he actually got married, and I'm so happy for them! :)

They look like an Asian version of Ken and Barbie. A beautiful couple. :)

As is typical of Korean weddings, after the ceremony there was a big buffet spread. Most of the food wasn't vegan, but there were a few veggie banchans I filled up on.

Dessert was 2 bowls of ddeok and fruit. The round, green ddeok with sweet white bean filling was soooo soft, chewy, sweet, and delicious! Best ddeok I've had in a while.

Sunday's breakfast was oatmeal cooked with apple chunks and cinnamon, and then topped with a persimmon, jujube chips, and sesame seeds.

I shall call this my 'Land of Morning Calm' oatmeal.

Today's lunch was curry noodles with eggplant, enoki mushrooms, tofu, and perilla leaves. And vegan kimchi on the side.

Anyway, enough about food. Yesterday, the weather was so lovely that I took Bunny to the rooftop of my building and we hung out there for a bit. I caught up on some reading and journaling, while Bunny ran around and enjoyed the view.

We had a mini photoshoot for Bunny. Enjoy:

First, hair & make up.

Gotta clean behind those ears...

Lookin' fierce. A bit too fierce.

pensive. gazing into the distance...

sexy, wind-blown hair

Wait, where u going...

come back.

Good job, Bunny!

*pet, pet, pet*

up close n personal.

Laksheme: vegan "donuts"!

2011-10-14T17:33:00.002+09:00

Now that I'm on the west side of Seoul, I'm muuuch closer to Hongdae which is one of my favorite places in this city. Before, I only made it out to Hongdae about once every few months, but now I'm pretty sure I'll be hanging out there at least once a week. There are just so many things to explore, discover, see and taste!

For instance, yesterday, I came across Laksheme, which is a "well-being" donut shop right along the main road leading up to Hongik University and believe it or not, they serve some delicious vegan donuts! Ok before I go any further, I should warn you that these are not your typical fat-laden dunkin' or krispy kreme donuts. Instead, Laksheme has healthified "donuts" that are steamed rather than deep-fried, and they do not come with tooth-rotting glaze or eggy custard inside. And for those with soy allergies, their vegan donuts are all soy-free too! The lady at the counter was great in pointing out the five vegan options, which comprise the following:

Very Berry donuts, and Lemon Peel donuts.

Mocha donuts

Cinnamon donuts

And almond donuts!

They also have steamed muffins, although these are not vegan.

"Low Fat, Yes Diet" haha. I'm not a calorie counter, but for those of you who are, you'll be pleased to know that the store lists the calories right next to each item. Depending on which donut flavor you get, the calories range from 120-190. I don't know how that compares to regular donuts, but I think this is pretty low, no?

cutesy interior~

I picked the 'Very Berry' donut (1,700 won) and headed to Design Aa Museum cafe where I enjoyed it with some overpriced Americano.

To be clear, I'm not really sure you can honestly call this a 'donut' because aside from the familiar ring shape, it did not resemble a donut in either texture or even taste. Since it wasn't deep fried and contained minimal fat, it did lack the slight crispy surface and the rich flavor that is characteristic of a traditional donut. BUT, with all that said, I have to say that I LOVED this. Some donut loyalists might be offended or disappointed at this 'faux,' healthified cake-thing, trying to trick people into thinking it's a real donut, but I've never been a fan of donuts anyway so this wasn't the case for me. Infact, I think I preferred this, although it's kind of like comparing apples and oranges.

The crumb was ever so light, soft, and spongy, and the dried cranberries provided just the perfect amount of mild sweetness. And there were plenty of walnuts studded throughout.

I was kind of in awe of the whole thing, while it quickly disappeared into ma mouth. I enjoyed it so much I almost walked all the way back to the store for a second one! I know I will absolutely go back to Laksheme to try all the other flavors in the near future.

Directions to Laksheme
Hongdae Station, Line 2, Exit 9. Walk straight out of the exit for 1 block and turn left after VIPS. Go up the road towards Hongik University. Laksheme will be on your left, in the Prugio complex. It's a few stores before Dos Tacos. Check their map.

'I Love Fall' Care Package!

2011-10-13T15:49:00.007+09:00

A couple bake shop announcements and shameless self-promoting today! Thank you for bearing with me as I peddle my goods... ^^

To celebrate this glorious fall weather, I've adding a sampler box to my online bake shop called the 'I love Fall' Care Package (16,000 won). Inside your carefully-packed box, you will receive:

1/2 loaf of banana nut bread
1 cranberry cacao-nib oat bar
2 cookies (ginger and/or chocolate snickerdoodle)
1 slice of zucchini bread
1 slice of pumpkin bread
1 brownie w/ walnuts
4 coconut macaroons
1 original art postcard (design may vary)

This is the best way to taste and sample as many different things as you can without having to order whole batches or loaves. It will also make a great gift for that special person in your life, vegan or not. And if you feel weird about ordering a care package for yourself, drop hints to your folks back home to order a box for you using Paypal, and then act surprised when you get it! :)

Next, for those who want to order items individually, there are two new items on the bake shop menu:

#1. Brownies! Took me long enough to get this on the menu, eh? Dense, cakey yet slightly fudgy at the same time, these walnut-brownies are an indulgent treat for your sweet tooth. Individually packaged for freshness.

#2. Banana Nut Bread. Slightly chewy on the outside, yet soft and moist on the inside.

The natural sweetness from the bananas + the nuttiness of the walnuts = match made in heaven~ :)

Last but not least, I recently got 10 different postcards made, each featuring one of my original paintings and illustrations! :)

- Coffee Dunk
- Bunny says hello
- Trees
- Sprinkles, not salt
- Bird & Balloons
- Do yoga, not drugs
- Drops
- Faces, united
- Bunny misses you
- Owl

Write a note on the back and send these to your friends and family back home, or simply frame them for hanging. You can order them individually from my bake shop site at 1,500 won each, or you can get the complete pack of 10 postcards, 12,000 won for Korean bank electronic transfers or $12.99 for Paypal orders.

And great news for my international readers! I will ship the postcards to anyone and everyone all around the world, so no one is excluded! If you're ordering through my bake shop site, please note that baked items are limited to those in South Korea. This 10-pack is also listed on my Etsy store, but the price is slightly higher to cover the listing fee.

'Sprinkles, not Salt'

Thank you for your interest & support! ^^

Carrot-Pineapple Cake with Tofu Cream~

2011-10-12T19:23:00.002+09:00

It's only been about 1 and a half weeks since I moved into my new apartment, but for some reason, it feels like over a month. So much has been going on lately that the days have all just blurred together... While I am pretty much settled into my new place, I also feel a strange sense of home-sickness. I miss the familiarity of my old Gunja neighborhood, and even the comforts of living at home in Cheonan! I think it's the crisp fall weather that's making me all sentimental and nostalgic for simpler days.... So last week, I revisited my old stomping grounds and hung out at Cafe Harunohee, and then yesterday, I was feeling the need to be around family so I managed to make a short spontaneous trip to Cheonan! The countryside was a-callin'.

Anyway, while I was there, my mom wanted to try the carrot-pineapple cake I made for the art reception this past weekend, so we did a little baking together. And now here's the recipe for you to try it yourself! The original version comes from this famous "Incredible Vegan Carrot Cake" recipe, but I made a few modifications based on the reviews. I subbed in some whole wheat flour, reduced the oil and sugar, and added some applesauce. The original recipe also includes all kinds of add-ins like shredded coconut, nuts, and raisins, but I kept the cake as 'basic' as possible to let the texture and flavor of the carrot and pineapple chunks stand out more. I'm sure the addition of walnuts and raisins would've turned this cake into a disco dance party in your mouth, but instead of that, I just topped the cake with some silky smooth tofu cream and garnished it with a few almonds, pumpkin seeds, and raisins.

Carrot-Pineapple Cake (adapted from here)
Makes 1 9" x9" cake

3/4 cup all purpose flour
1/2 cup whole wheat flour
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon allspice
1/2 tsp nutmeg
1,2 tsp salt
1 1/2 Tbs ground flax seed
1/4 cup water
1 cup organic cane sugar
1/4 cup canola oil
2 Tbs applesauce (I used homemade)
1 cup carrots, finely grated
1/4 cup canned pineapple, crushed and drained
1/2 tsp vanilla

1. Preheat oven to 350F or 180C. Line cake pan with parchment paper or lightly oil and flour the inside. In a medium bowl, mix flours, baking soda, cinnamon, allspice, nutmeg, baking powder, and salt.

2. Use a whisk or blender to whip the flax seed and water until it gets thick and creamy (I use a hand-held immersion blender), and then add the sugar, canola, applesauce, grated carrots, crushed pineapple, and vanilla extract. Mix well.

3. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and mix until just combined. At this point, feel free to throw in any add-ins like raisins, nuts, or coconut shreds. Pour batter into cake pan and smooth the surface with a spatula.

4. Bake for 35-40 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted comes out clean (in my convection oven it took about 30 minutes, but in my mom's gas oven, it took about 40.)

Tofu cream topping
1/4 block of medium-firm tofu, rinsed and drained
1 Tbs agave syrup
1/2 tsp cornstarch
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1 tsp marmalade jam (or lemon juice)

For the tofu cream, rinse and drain the tofu as much as you can, then simply blend all ingredients together until very smooth. Taste and add more sweetener if needed. Spoon onto the cake and garnish right before serving. Enjoy!

Pre-bake

Post bake.

Even though the cake was plenty-moist by itself, the addition of tofu cream on top made it extra luscious and special.

I definitely savored every bite.

And added an extra dollop of tofu cream for the last mouthful. :)

Ps. How's MoFo going for everyone? I haven't looked through my google reader in a few days and I'm scared to even attempt to read through the thousands of unread blog entries.... Mo-Fo on, my friends!

Saturday Scenes

2011-10-10T21:45:00.006+09:00

Had a fun-filled weekend! On Saturday, I attended OZE Escapade, a musical performance/installation show at the Mullae Arts Center. Actually, the main reason why I went was because my Alien's Day Out bake shop was catering vegan treats for the event! Jee Soo was one of the artists/planners of the event and as a vegan herself, she wanted to have a vegan reception. How cool is that? And ofcourse I was totally on board and thrilled at this new opportunity. As my first official catering gig, I was a bit nervous, but it all turned out awesome and things went off without a hitch.

Here's Jee Soo in one of her many performances. I didn't get a chance to see all of her pieces because I was busy prepping for the reception, but what I did experience was pretty awesome! It was so rad to meet her because we have so many things in common. We're both Korean, have both lived in the US and UK, and we're both interested in the arts! Oh, and we were both excited to be able to share vegan food with Korean omnis. :)

The reception was held in the cafe area of the Mullae Arts Center. Here are the things I made:

Coconut macaroons with chocolate drizzled on top.

Chocolate snickerdoodles. This is only about half of the lot.

Several trays of super moist and flavorful carrot-pineapple cake. I think this was the biggest hit! :)

Now if only I had some tofutti for the vegan cream cheese frosting....

And finally, I made some thin mint squares, individually packaged for people to take home.

The boys from AWEH also attended the event and I believe they liked the vegan goodies!

I got some business cards printed.... finally!!!

After the art show and packing up my containers, the guys and I were wandering around the area and came upon the Mullae Artists Village which is located in one of the back alleyways. It was such a random yet awesome discovery because one wouldn't expect to find such a passionate artistic community in this crusty, run-down part of Seoul. During the day, the buildings function as old industrial complexes and factories, but then at night when all the businesses close up shop and the gates come down, you can see all these murals and graffiti, and the artists (and feral cats) come out of hiding.

hanging out by an outdoor video art installation.

Oh, and we also ended up going to Hongdae which is always suuuuper crowded on weekends.

Live performance in the playground park

This man and his ginormous husky have been on the streets of Hongdae for so many years. The dog is practically the mascot of Hongdae. He's such an impressive yet calm dog, letting strangers get close and pet him.... he needs a bath though.

The name of a store. :)

Anyhoo, that about sums up my Saturday night filled with creative, inspiring people! Good times all around.