Gochujang Peppers & Onion Penne with Chicken Sausage

I've been so tired this week and all I've been doing is whining 😅. Can't wait for this week to be over. Although, I have a 24hr call this Friday :( 

On the other hand, we've also started wedding planning! I didn't realize how much money I'll be hemorrhaging this year on my resident salary. Looking at all the costs that go into getting married has been somewhat stressful.  I wish I could get a city hall wedding, but I think my parents would disown me 😰.

Anyway, I've been making quick and easy meals at night, so I can get some snooze in before waking up at the crack of dawn. I was sent to try Al Fresco's Pasta Night Mild Italian Style Chicken Sausage and I love how there are peppers in the sausages themselves! I threw together something quick with Korean Pantry items like Gochujang (Korean Chili Paste) and more peppers and it was delicious.

They're already fully cooked, so I just browned the sides to give it a nice color, chopped it up and then added it to the pasta. The sweetness of the peppers and Italian herbs in the sausage played so well with the gochujang tomato sauce with a little bit of kick from the Korean chili powder.

Gochujang Peppers & Onion Penne with Chicken Sausage

3-4 servings

1 box penne pasta (4 servings)
1 pack Al Fresco's Pasta Night Mild Italian Style Chicken Sausage
1 small onion
3 bell peppers (assorted colors)
2 cloves garlic
2 tsp dried parsley
1 tbsp gochugaru (Korean chili powder)
2 tbsp gochujang (Korean chili paste)
1 cup canned crushed tomato
salt and pepper to taste
fresh parsley garnish

1. Bring a pot of water to boil and add a pinch of salt and a little bit of olive oil. Cook penne in boiling water according to package. Reserve 1/2 cup of the pasta water. Drain pasta and set aside
2. Add a little oil to a frying pan on medium heat and brown chicken sausage. Remove from heat and cut diagonally. Set aside
3. Saute in oil the onions and garlic until partially translucent, add bell peppers and cook until a little softened. Add back the sliced sausages and add the chili powder (gochugaru) and saute for 1-2 minute
4. Add 1/2 cup of pasta water to the frying pan and then add gochujang and crushed tomatoes. Add in the dried parlsey. Allow to simmer for 3 minutes. Salt and pepper to taste. 
5. Lastly, add in the pasta until heated through. Garnish with fresh parsley

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Kimchichurri Hasselback Potatoes

Happy St Patrick's Day! I guess it was yesterday, but I wasn't able to post this until today. I'm on another 24 hour shift in the hospital, but was so thankful that my St Paddy's weekend wasn't crazily filled with belligerent drinkers hurting themselves! So in true Irish fashion, I made some potatoes and topped it with something green.

I love a buttered potato and it's actually very common to eat potatoes or sweet potatoes with kimchi in Korea. We say that potatoes and kimchi are friends, like PB & J are! I decided to adapt the classic Argentine chimichurri sauce with kimchi instead and used cilantro because I thought it might go together better than parsley. And so you have kimchi + chimichurri = KIMCHICHURRI!!

I've now got a jar of this delicious tangy fresh kimchichurri in the fridge and will top everything with it this week 😋

Kimchichurri Hasselback Potatoes

6 small yukon potatoes
2 tbsp olive oil
1 pat butter
sea salt, black pepper
roasted sesame seeds

Kimchichurri
2 stalks green onion
1 bunch cilantro (or 1 cup firmly packed leaves, thick stems trimmed)
1/3 cup napa cabbage kimchi
3 cloves garlic, minced
3 tsp kimchi juice
1/2 tbsp gochugaru (Korean red pepper powder)
1 tbsp light sesame oil
1/3 cup olive oil
salt

1. Prepare potatoes. Wash, remove eyes and soak in cold water for 10 mins. Preheat oven to 425F
2. Put potato on chopping board, flat side down. Cut in 5 mm intervals almost all the way through
3. Arrange potatoes in a baking tray. Rub butter on top of each potato, drizzle olive oil and sprinkle salt and fresh black pepper. Bake for about 40 mins or until the tops are crispy and the flesh is soft
4. While potatoes are baking, get out your food processor. Add green onion, cilantro leaves and kimchi. Pulse to achieve coarse/finely chopped texture. Otherwise, I did this all buy hand (because my food processor was already in use with other things :P). Plus, I like a more chopped chunky texture for chimichurri
5. Stir in the minced garlic, kimchi juice, gochugaru, sesame and olive oil. Salt to taste
6. Top kimchichurri over baked hasselback potatoes and serve. Chimichurri can be kept for a week in a tightly closed jar. It tastes even better as it ages!

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Gouda Grilled Kim-Cheese Sandwich with Avo and Prosciutto

I'm stuck in the SICU again for 5 weeks, where our hours are 24hrs on/24hrs off. The hours blows, but I do get a day of sunlight and time to do normal human things like making doctor's appointments and going to the bank. The weather has been a snowy this week and luckily I went grocery shopping, because I am definitely not walking out in the mush!

Here's a sandwich I made on my off day! Lots of gouda cheese, prosciutto and avocado. The sautéed kimchi brings the acidity to help cut the greasiness. So good :)

Gouda Grilled Kim-Cheese Sandwich with Avo and Prosciutto

makes 1 sandwich

2 slices sourdough bread
1 clove garlic
1 pat of butter
3 slices of gouda cheese
1/4 cup kimchi, coarsely chopped
1 slice prosciutto
1/2 avocado, sliced lengthwise

1. Rub garlic onto bread, or you can mince it and spread it on. Spread butter and toast to your liking
2. Heat small pan with 1/2 tbsp sesame oil. Saute kimchi until slightly soft for 2-3 mins 
3. Add on gouda to a slice of bread and allow to toast lightly as well to make it nice and soft
4. Place on a plate to assemble sandwich. Add the warm kimchi on top of gouda, which will also help melt it
5. Tear prosciutto to lay over kimchi and place avocado and bread on top. 

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Thai Tea Skillet Brownies

I hope you guys had a splendid Easter weekend! My Easter holidays growing up usually involved church and my mum forcing me to play some hymn on the violin. I used to have terrible stage fright, and I still do! But, my mum kept making me do all kinds of things in front of people because "it builds character". Now that I'm an almost adult, I get to wake up late and eat left over Easter dessert/candies for breakfast :P.

It's raining in Richmond today, so I can't imagine what doing a egg hunt would be like in this weather. My roommate and I did some major spring cleaning. Honestly, we only clean when we have prospective renters look at the apartment, so I'm glad some people want to see it tomorrow. We really needed a reason to kick our butts into high cleaning gear!! You don't even want to know some of the things I found under my desk! It's difficult when you have two girls with long black hair shedding all over the place :P

Cleaning is some back breaking work though, so we'll be treating ourselves to some leftover brownies a la mode. The butter here is infused with Thai tea, so it gives it some depth and extra flavor! I'm using the same Revol mini dishes that I used in my last kimchi chili tots post. These are perfect for serving and portion control...otherwise, I'd eat the whole pan! And, because of the gooey nature of these brownies, it's difficult to clean but these "cast iron" dishes are able to go into the dish washer! What a relief, because I have absolutely no strength to even wash dishes :D

Thai Tea Skillet Brownies

makes 3-4 mini skillet brownies

1 stick butter
4-5 tbsp loose thai tea leaves
5 oz unsweetened chocolate chips, melted
2 eggs, room temp
1.5 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup all purpose flour
1 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
sweetened condensed milk

1. Put Thai tea leaves in a cheesecloth or tea bag. Melt butter in a small saucepan and place tea bags into the butter to let steep for a few minutes (I let it sit for 5-8 mins). Some thai tea leaves have orange food coloring in them, so if your butter turns bright orange, don't be alarmed!
2. Preheat oven to 350F and butter mini casserole dishes. Once the tea is done steeping, take out the tea bags, add in chocolate chips and the residual heat will melt it. If it isn't quite melted, just put it on low heat for a few seconds and it will melt quickly. Set aside and let cool
3. In a large bowl, mix together sugar flour, baking powder and salt. In a smaller bowl, lightly beat eggs with the vanilla extract and stir this into the cooled melted chocolate. Mix together the wet and dry ingredients until just incorporated. Try not to over mix, or you'll get a more cakey brownie!
4. Bake for 20-25mins, or less if you want your center to be very gooey. And that's okay because we're going to be eating these with spoons anyway!
5. Serve with a giant scoop of ice cream and drizzle on sweetened condensed milk

I developed this recipe for Revol; all opinions expressed are my own. I love their beautiful and creative kitchen bakeware, serve ware and cooking tools :) Thank you for the support!

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Kimchi Chili Cheese Tots

After completing my surgery rotation, I've been trying to clear out the fridge of all kinds of stuff that have been sitting in there for too long. I have a gallon sized bucket of kimchi, an assortment of all kinds of shredded cheese and a family size pack of tots in the freezer. There's just this appeal to buying bulk and making the most of my costco membership even if I'm only cooking for one! Blame it on my Asian-ness and for my love of coupons. I'm not like the coupon lady you see on TV, but I'm pretty close :P!

Kimchi reaches a point where it's pretty much too sour to eat, but perfect to cook with. Frying the kimchi also helps mellow out the sourness and spicyness, and goes well with heavier items like cheese and sour cream. So, I've made a rendition of my favorite comfort food, chili cheese tots! And added kimchi and more spice with gochugaru (Korean chili powder). It's a lot of flavors, but they really work well together.

I would serve it in a skillet so you can put easily put it back in the oven to make the cheese all bubbly and gooey. I used Revol's mini ramekins that look like they are cast iron pans, but are actually porcelain. I baked the tots in them and put them back under the broiler to melt the cheese. I love the look of cast iron without getting carpal tunnel from lifting them! They're also pretty cute and perfect size for serving appetizers. I can't wait to show you guys my next dessert post using these coming up next week!

Kimchi Chili Cheese Tots

serves 3-4 people

1/2 yellow onion, diced
2 tsp minced garlic
1/2 cup kimchi, diced (aged)
1 jalapeño, diced
1 16oz can diced tomatoes with juice
1 tsp gochugaru (Korean chili powder)
1 bay leaf
1 tbsp ketchup
salt and pepper
1 16oz can chick peas
1 bag tots
2 stalks green onions, diced
Toppings: shredded cheddar cheese, bacon bits, cilantro, sour cream

1. In a medium stockpot over medium high-heat, add some vegetable oil and diced onion. Stir continuously and add garlic, kimchi and jalapeños
2. Saute until the onion beings to turn translucent and add the can of diced tomatoes. To the chili, add gochugaru, bay leaf and ketchup. Simmer over medium heat until slightly thickened (about 15-20 minutes)
3. Meanwhile, preheat oven to 350F and bake frozen tots until hot and crispy on the outside (according to package instructions)
4. Add chick peas and season with salt and pepper to taste. Let simmer for another 5-10 minutes. Stir in chopped up cilantro and diced green onions
5. Ladle a generous helping of chili over the cooked tots and sprinkle with lots of cheese. Place in oven again until cheese is melted and bubbling
6. Sprinkle any desired toppings like bacon bits, sour cream and garnish with cilantro, jalapeño slices and green onions

I developed this recipe for Revol; all opinions expressed are my own. I love their beautiful and creative kitchen bakeware, serve ware and cooking tools :) Thank you for the support!

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Mango Chai Tiramisu

I'm on my surgery rotation right now, so I don't have much to update you on about my life. Mostly because it's really boring and consists of waking up at the crack of dawn and standing in the OR all day. Although, I'm on cardiothoracic surgery right now and I get to poke and jab at beating hearts. I even shocked one today right in the chest :O! Speaking of hearts...it's almost V-day! I don't usually do anything, because it's a pain in the butt to eat with other lovey-dovey couples (who should really get a room) and prices at restaurants are ridiculously expensive. I'm planning on spending Vday ordering wings and pizza!!

Anyway, I wanted to put this recipe up since I've been getting questions about the recipe after I posted a photo on instagram. I know it's been months since I said I was going to upload this post, but at least I did it!!

Mango Chai Tiramisu

makes a 8x8" tiramisu cake

20-22 lady finger biscuits
1 tbsp chai spice mix (like this one if you want to DIY)
2 tbsp sugar
1 tbsp dry milk powder
1 cup hot water

4 oz mascarpone cheese (about 1 cup)
2 tsps cinnamon
1 tsp ginger
1/4 cup powdered sugar
1 cup heavy whipping cream
1 tsp vanilla

1.5 cups mango, diced
2 tbsp sugar
1 tbsp meyer lemon jam (or use some lemon juice)

1. Make sure you have enough biscuits for 2 layers for a 8x8" square pan. Line the biscuits in the pan so they fit tightly on the bottom. Cut any pieces so that it fits to make a flat layer. Set aside the biscuits
2. In a shallow bowl, mix chai spices, sugar, milk powder and hot water together. Let cool (This will smell ridiculously spicy but it tones down over night)
3. In a mixing bowl, whip mascarpone cheese, cinnamon, ginger and powdered sugar together until fluffy. Place in a large bowl and then whip up heavy cream until soft peaks form and then whip in vanilla extract. Carefully fold mascarpone mix to the whipped cream until no streaks remain
4. In a blender, blend cubed mango, sugar and lemon jam together
5. Assembly: Dunk lady finger biscuits into the chai for about 7 seconds top and bottom. Lay them down like you had previously planned. Once they are in a nice layer, add 1/2 the mascarpone mix and flatten into a neat layer with a offset spatula. Next, spread all the mango over the mascarpone
6. Dunk lady finger biscuits again to make the second layer. Cover with the rest of the mascarpone. Tent pan with foil while taking care not to touch the surface and refrigerate for at least 3 hours (but best overnight)
7. Serve chilled with cubed mango and chai spice sprinkled on top!

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Mochi Stuffed Almond Cookies - 찰떡쿠키

Chinese new year is just right around the corner and soon it will be the year of the monkey!! This is one of my fav holidays, because it represents new beginnings, good food and merriment with the family. Back in Hong Kong, we used to get a week break from school and the day would start with wearing new red colored clothing, taping all kinds of good omens written on red paper on our doors and walls. Then we would go about town visiting friends and families to wish them a happy new year and to collect red envelopes full of money! I never did get to see where all that money went, since my mum said she would "safe-keep" it for me :/

I really miss the CNY atmosphere in Asia. People are super happy and the whole city is decorated in all kinds of red colors including red building lights, red candles, and red lanterns. Everyone is singing CNY songs and wishing each other luck for the new year and there are lion dances and fireworks going off in the background. The typical new year foods are so so so good. Usually there is a mochi/rice cake dessert called nian gao, literally meaning "higher year" and so it's lucky for every household to eat it during cny so that their whole year will be very prosperous. I've kind of adapted the traditional Chinese almond butter cookies and added a gigantic mochi filling in the middle so that you too can have some lucky cookies for the new year :D!

Here are some blogger friends who decided to take a spin on Chinese New Year cookies. Check them out below!

• Vermilion Roots - Vegan Cornflake Cereal Cookies
• The Missing Lokness - Fried Red Bean Puffs
• Daily Cooking Quest - Chinese Peanut Cookies
• Curious Nut - Chocolate Almond Cookies
• What To Cook Today - Tapioca cookies
• Butter & Type - Red Bean & Strawberry Pinwheel Cookies
• Wok & Skillet - Pineapple Jam Tarts
• Bams Kitchen - Sesame Spiral Pie Cookies
• Brunch-n-Bites - Cherry Blossom Cookies
• Foodie Baker - Chinese Gluten-Free Peanut Cookies
• Hapa Nom Nom - Honey Almond Cookies
• Omnivore's Cookbook - Quinoa Sesame Brittle
• Yummy Workshop - Browned Butter Chinese Walnut Cookies 
• Thirsty for Tea - Macau Almond Cookies

Mochi Stuffed Almond Cookies - 찰떡쿠키

makes 10 cookies

1 cup flour
1 tbsp cornstarch
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/4 cup sugar
1/4 tsp salt
1 egg
1 tbsp condensed milk
1 tsp almond extract
3 tbsp butter, melted
egg wash + almonds

Filling
1 cup glutinous rice flour (mochiko)
3 tbsp sugar
1/2 tsp salt
3/4 cup whole milk

1. Preheat oven to 350F and prepare greased baking tray or line with parchment paper
2. In a large bowl, mix flour, cornstarch, baking powder, sugar and salt. In a medium bowl, melt butter and then beat in sugar, salt, condensed milk, almond extract and lastly a beaten egg. Mix dry and wet mix together until you get a smooth yellow dough. Wrap dough in seran wrap and let it rest while you make the filling
3. For the mochi filling. In a medium bowl, mix mochiko powder, sugar, salt and milk. Microwave on high for about a minute. Take out to mix with a heat proof spatula (be careful because it will be hot). It won't be done yet, so microwave for another minute. It is done when it looks like one block of white mochi. Protect your hand with gloves or use the spatula to cut out 10 equal sizes of mochi (or let it cool a little first haha)
4. Once your cookie dough has rested for about 20-30mins, evenly divide into 10 balls. Flatten balls of dough in your hand, place mochi in the center and wrap around. It will take some molding with your hands to get it around the mochi. Repeat for the other cookies
5. Make egg wash with a beaten egg and brush on top of cookies and press in an almond
6. Bake for 10-15mins or until golden. Cool for 5 mins before eating. You can keep remainders in a ziploc bag in the fridge, but the mochi will harden and the cookies will need to be microwaved for 20-30secs to soften it again!

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Creamy Kimchi and Sausage Pasta

I'm back in Richmond!! When I first landed here, I was pretty surprised that LA had been colder and rainier than Richmond :\. I was all prepared with my down jacket, scarves and wooly hat...but when I got off the plane, I was sweating and huffing and puffing when I got to the baggage carousel haha. I actually wished it was colder so I could put some of my winter clothes to use! I totally take that back now though! I have to walk to school fairly early in the morning and it has been bitingly cold to the BONE. Like -7 celsius (still can't get used to Fahrenheit)!! As someone who has lived at the equator most of her life and now in sunny southern California, I can't get used to this freezing weather! I feel like the Michelin tire white puffy man everyday.

I'm glad my mum has packed a suitcase full of food for me before I left, yay! I can seriously say I don't have to go food shopping for a few months :D. Unless, I have to buy eggs, which I do...because eggs are life :P. I put this kimchi pasta up on instagram a few days ago and got a lot of demands for the recipe. Yes, I did make it last year...and it is finally up now :]. At that time, I really needed to get rid of my kimchi before I left for 2 weeks...but, I didn't expect it to be so good! The sausage and herbiness really goes well with the sharp bites of kimchi and parmesan. This dish is best enjoyed with friends and a hearty appetite!

Creamy Kimchi and Sausage Pasta

serves 4-5

1/2 lb bow tie pasta
1/2 large medium onion, sliced thinly into half moons
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 jalapeño, finely diced (optional)
1/2 lb sausage, sweet Italian
1 cup napa kimchi (slightly aged/sour), chopped into 1" squares
1.5 cup heavy whipping cream
2 tbsp white wine
1/2 cup parmesan, grated
3 tbsp freshly chopped parsley (or 2 tbsp dried parsley)
salt and pepper

1. Boil pasta according to directions on the box, but about 2 mins before al dente or your desired texture. Rinse with cold water and set aside
2. Heat large frying pan with some oil and sauté onions, garlic and jalapeño until onions are slightly translucent. Place sausage in and break it up into bitable bits with your spatula. Add in the kimchi when the sausage isn't too pink on the outside. Heavily add pepper and a little bit of salt.
3. After adding the kimchi and frying it around for about 2-3 mins, pour in the heavy cream and stir. Reduce heat to medium-low. Add the white wine and then the pasta. Stir to coat. The sauce should thicken in a few minutes. Gently fold over pasta once in a while until all the pasta has warmed up and is to the texture you like, sprinkle in the parsley and parmesan cheese. Add more salt and pepper if needed.
4. Garnish with fresh parsley and parmesan and serve hot.

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"Carbonara" Dukbokki (까르보나라 떡볶이)

The problem with being on electives is that it is far too relaxing. I know it's odd to complain about having nothing to do, but I feel like a sloth everyday. I mean today I "napped" from 1pm to 5pm. LOL, that's embarrassing... Although, I did sleep at 5am watching tv shows anddd it's now midnight and not at all tired :P. It also doesn't help that I'm in radiology and sit in a dark room all day. I think it takes a certain kind of skill not to doze off in that environment!

I've also been slacking in the kitchen (did I just complain about having zilch to do?). But, a while back I needed to finish using up leftover ingredients from Thanksgiving, like half and half, cheese and Korean rice cakes. So instead of the traditional red hot gochujang sauce, I made a white sauce, which isn't carbonara, but in Korea anything with white sauce is called carbonara (I don't know why!). It's kind of a thing to make a white version of spicy dishes in Korea. Like white jjamppong (백뽕), a normally spicy red seafood noodle dish into a mild flavorful version. Or like white kimchi (백김치), a kimchi without any chili powder. Even though I'm a huge fan of spicy food, I really enjoy the non-spicy versions too. My roommate loved this dish so much she said she would actually make it. And I should tell you my roommate only cooks (something other than ramen) less than 5 times a year. Luckily she's not too malnourished since I've been feeding her for years now haha :P.

Carbonara Dukbokki - 까르보나라 떡볶이

serves 3-4

1/2 medium yellow onion, diced
1/2 jalapeno, diced
3-4 cloves garlic, minced
1/4 cup diced spam (or a few strips of bacon)
2 cups rice cakes
1 egg yolk
3/4 cup half and half (plus 1/4 cup milk to thin out if needed)
1/2 cup broccoli florets, cooked
1/2 carrot, sliced (I used frozen veggies and just microwaved it for a minute)
1/2 cup cheddar jack, shredded
2 tbsp flat leaf parsley, chopped coarsely (optional)
salt and pepper to taste (about a tsp each)

1. In a large frying pan, sauté onions, japaleno, and garlic with some oil until semi softened/translucent on high heat. Toss in the spam until the sides turn golden and then toss in the rice cakes and stir about for 1-2mins
2. Loosen the egg yolk, milk and half and half in a small bowl. Pour this over the rice cakes. Stir to coat, cover and simmer on low-med heat for about 8-10mins.
3. Toss in broccoli and carrots and stir to coat as well. The sauce should have thickened somewhat by now. Then add the cheddar jack cheese. You can use any sharp cheese like gouda too. Season with salt and pepper to taste. 
4. Once the broccoli and carrots are heated through and the sauce is sticking well to everything, turn off heat and throw in the chopped parsley. 

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Bulgogi Stuffed Baked Potatoes

I'm currently on-call for Neurology and it's pretty quiet right now, so I'm taking a little bit of time to write a post before I hit the sack (look at this dedication :P). Actually, I think another patient is coming in... so I guess I'm not going to sleep :'(

I'll have to be quick! This is a super duper easy recipe. Mostly, because it doesn't take much to dress up potatoes. Just some butter and you're good to go. Here, I just added bulgogi, kimchi and cheese!

I'm kinda obsessed with that 3 combo ingredient, because they just go so well together. I made a pizza out of them not too long ago as well! The bulgogi lends some sweetness, the kimchi cuts the greasy cheesiness and then topped off with some cooling sour-cream. It's an even quicker meal if you microwave your spuds. Got to go now! I have so many thanksgiving recipes lined up, but I just wish I had time to post them!!!

Bulgogi Stuffed Baked Potatoes

makes 4 servings

1/2 pound marinated bulgogi
1/2 yellow onion, thinly sliced into half moons
4 large russet potatoes
4 pats of salted butter
1-2 cup cheddar jack, shredded
Toppings: sour cream, chopped kimchi, roasted sesame seeds, chopped green onions
salt & pepper

1. Preheat oven to 350F. Scrub potatoes and poke holes all over it with a fork. Bake for 1.5 hrs
2. Saute thinly sliced onions until semi translucent. Add marinated bulgogi and saute until fully cooked
3. Once potatoes are able to be pierced easily, carefully split them and add a pat of salted butter
4. Set broiler on high. Add cooked bulgogi and onion in between and cover generously with cheese
5. Once cheese is melted, throw on all kinds of toppings. 

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Homemade Matcha-mallows S'mores

A quick hello before I go to sleep (I guess goodnight?)! I'm kinda excited to share a marshmallow recipe with you guys, that contains no corn syrup! Honestly, I don't know what's up with all the bad hype about corn syrup and don't want to read about it, since I already have to read about bowel obstruction for my patients (hehe sorry). I've been meaning to make marshmallows, so I actually bought a bottle of corn syrup, but found a recipe just using sugar. Now, I have no idea what to do with the corn syrup :/

The addition of something bitter/earthy like matcha to marshmallows is such a genius move. Usually, I find marshmallows way too sweet and absolutely will not eat them unless sandwiched in s'mores. This was before I made some homemade ones. I kid you not... they are like fluffy pillows that instantly melt in your mouth. You can eat so many of them, because they aren't too sweet and I guess they're somewhat healthy (because of matcha???).

I'm excited to introduce you guys to the culinary matcha that I've been incorporating into new recipes you'll be seeing more soon! I'm super in love with matcha!!! I could run to the rooftop and shout out my love for it! It has such an unique earthy and healthy quality to it, I find myself sprinkling it on everything.

I have a whole recipe gallery dedicated to matcha! If you want to try it, I'm partnering with Panatea and offering 10% off their culinary grade bag (Code: mhpculinary)

They also have awesome matcha tees and tanks for those super matcha-afficionados. I've been debating on getting some, but they've run out of the smallest sizes D:

Homemade Matcha-mallows S'mores
makes 30-40 s'mores
adapted from kitchenfrau

Matcha marshmallows
1 cup water (divided)
2 packages gelatin (about 4.5 tsps)
2 cups white sugar
1.5 tsp vanilla
1/8 tsp salt
2-3 tbsps Panatea's culinary grade matcha
powdered sugar
corn starch

1. Prepare a 9x13" pan by lightly greasing with butter and powdered sugar. Tap out excess powdered sugar from pan.
2. Stir 1/2 cup of water with gelatin and allow to bloom (it should be like a clump of jelly fish :/)
3. Meanwhile heat sugar and the other 1/2 cup of water in a small pot until dissolved. Add the gelatin into the pot and bring to boil while stirring. Once bubbling, take off heat, add salt and stir (it will turn whitish and make sure sides are scraped down as well). Cool to room temp
4. Once cool, add vanilla and pour into a stand mixer (the cooled mix will look translucent and yellowy). Beat on high for 6 mins, the coagulated stuff will magically turn white and fluffy! Stop and add matcha powder and beat for 2-3 mins more
5. Dump into prepared pan. I mean dump, because the mixture will be sticky and difficult to handle. Smooth out layer as even as you can. Let cool and dry overnight
6. Cut into desired shape: I cut it into squares and circles to the size of my crackers. Always wipe your knife or plastic when slicing so it doesn't stick too badly. Toss marshmallows into a half and half mix of matcha and powdered sugar or corn starch. Allow to dry on a rack for a few hours

Graham crackers
1.5 cups all purpose
1 cup whole wheat
3/4 cup light brown sugar
1 tsp baking soda
2 tsp cinnamon
3/4 tsp salt
1 stick frozen butter (cut in tbsps)
1/3 cup honey
1/3 cup whole milk
2 tbsp vanilla

1. Pulse flours, sugar, baking soda, cinnamon and salt in a food processor just to mix. Add frozen butter and pulse until you can see small pea-sized lumps amongst the dry mix
2. Whisk honey, milk, and vanilla to food processor and pulse until dough comes together. You can take it out and knead the dough so it forms a ball. It will be soft and sticky. Cover with plastic wrap and stick in the fridge for at least 2 hours
3. Roll out dough on floured surface and roll to slightly thicker than 1/8". Cut into squares of desired size (I did 1.5x1.5"). Place on silicon mat or parchment paper. Prick cut graham squares with a fork. Chill for at least 30 mins
4. Preheat oven to 350F and bake chilled crackers for 18-24mins or until nicely browned on the edge. Cool on rack

Assembly

- I used nutella as my (chocolate layer), but a ganache dark chocolate layer would put this over the top!

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Matcha Tres Leches Cake

Hello blogworld! I'm finally free to blog! Although, I will be MIA again for another 2-3 weeks. :P I'm actually typing this post at the airport about to board the plane for Korea and Nepal. I seriously only have a ticket to Nepal and NO plans. This makes my type A personality go crazy, but I haven't had any time to book/plan anything, so I am without hotel, itinerary, travel insurance or proper hiking equipment. Yikes... It's supposed to be raining all throughout my trip and I only brought a pair of Nikes to trek the Himalayan range. Hmmm.. I'm starting to worry now, but I'm about to board in half and hour and can't do anything about it. D:

I hope I come back in one piece... Besides that, I made this cake as homage to the matcha almond lattes I drank every.single.day.of.studying. I'm really sensitive to caffeine and coffee makes me go crazy, so I was so grateful when I learned of Encha from my fave blogger, Betty of  lejusdorangeblog.com. They make different grades of matcha, which is awesome because I always feel guilty using a lot of it for baking. Matcha lattes seriously saved my life, since I obviously can't be sleeping all day and they taste so delicious that it put me out of my studying misery. THANK YOU ENCHA!

Matcha Tres Leches Cake

makes a 8 x 8" cake
adapted from allrecipes.com

6 tbsp white sugar (divided)
3 medium/small egg yolks
3 medium/small egg whites
2.5 tbsp almond milk
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 cup all purpose flour
3/4 tsp baking powder
2 tbsp matcha powder - using almond latte grade from ENCHA

3 tbsp sweetened condensed milk
1/4 cup evaporated milk
1/4 cup almond milk
1 tbsp matcha powder
heavy whipping cream

1. Preheat oven to 350F. Butter and flour bottom and sides of a 8x8" pan
2. Beat egg yolks with 3 tbsp of sugar until fluffy. Mix in 2.5 tbsp milk, vanilla, flour, baking powder and matcha powder
3. In a separate bowl, whisk egg whites with the other 3 tbsp of sugar until soft peaks form. Fold egg whites into the batter carefully
4. Pour into the prepared pan and bake for 35-40 mins or until a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean
5. Allow the cake to completely cool. Pour a ton of holes into it with a fork or toothpick. Mix together the condensed milk, evaporated milk, almond milk and matcha powder. Pour over the cake slowly until it is absorbed. Chill in the fridge overnight
6. You can whip about 1/2 cup of whipping cream and put an even layer on top before chilling. I just served the cake with dollops of whipped cream and strawberries

I received a bag of Encha culinary-grade matcha for this post. But, I honestly love their stuff and bought their almond-grade out of my own pocket, which I used to make this cake. All product opinions are my own!

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Bulgogi Kimchi-jeon Waffle Sandwich - 불고기 김치전 와플 샌드위치

While growing up, my mum, being the ultimate Korean tiger mum, tells me before any exam that that exam was going to be the most important exam of my life. In primary school, my mum said my 6th grade scholastic exam was probably going to be life-defining. Then, I hit secondary school and she said my GCSEs (some British exam) were going to be life-changing. And before I went off to college, she said my IB diploma exam was going to be a matter of life and death...  Now, I'm in med school and in the midst of studying for what is probably the most important exam of my life. Haha lol, I think I'm turning into mum.

Anyway, what I'm trying to say is that my upcoming exam is going to suck up a lot of time, so I will be taking blogging hiatus. I guess I could have started with that, so you didn't have to read all the junk above. #Sorrynotsorry, also #notsorryforthehastag!  I will be keeping my instagram alive though, because I am severely insta-obsessed. Only some mind-blowing, turn-water-into-wine miracle of an exam can stop me from instagramming.  Come find me there! (Did I put enough links? :P)

But for now, I leave you with this behemoth of a sandwich... until next time!

Bulgogi Kimchi-jeon Waffle Sandwich - 불고기 김치전 와플 샌드위치 

makes 2 waffle sandwiches

1.5 cup Korean pancake/jeon flour mix

3/4 cup water

1/2 cup kimchi, chopped into bits

3 tbsp kimchi juice
1/4 cup green onion, chopped

2-3 tbsp vegetable oil

Your favorite bulgogi recipe - click for details

1 lb rib eye, sliced thinly
1 asian pear
1/2 onion
3-4 cloves garlic
5 tbsp soysauce
3 tbsp mirin or cooking wine
1 tbsp sugar
1/2 tbsp sesame oil
1 tsp pepper

2 fried eggs

handful of baby kale and chard

1. In a large bowl, mix together Korean pancake flour and water. Add and mix in chopped kimchi, green onions, kimchi juice and oil
2. Preheat your waffle iron, grease with a little veg oil and make waffles like you would normally do. Cook your bulgogi and fry your eggs in the meantime.
3. To assemble: place 1 waffle down on a plate. Stack bulgogi, kale and a fried egg. Top with another kimchi waffle and eat it while it's hot

Note: If preparing a batch, you can easily double the waffle batter. ****Cool on wired racks because condensation at the bottom will make the waffle go soggy!!

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Kimchi Fried Rice Waffles

This is a quick post before I get back to studying! We are currently learning about how the kidney functions and these organs cannot get anymore interesting...uh naahhtt. The only thing I've learned so far is that I have a drinking problem. As in I drink too much water (please... what else would I drink?). And if you see blood in your pee, it's time you paid a visit to your doctor!

Yay, I'm finally posting about something other than sweets and desserts today! I just have a wicked sweet tooth and probably a lot of cavities :(. I can happily eat ice-cream for dinner, I dream of eating donuts while I'm eating my salad and you'll probably find a muffin stuffed in my bra on any given day.

Soo anyway, I decided to waffle my rice one day, because I think I saw it on my instagram or something. But, waffling makes the rice super crispy on the outside, like that burnt rice you find on the bottom of a hot stone pot (called noo-roong-ji 누룽지). Yum, it's so chewy and fragrant! I just got a waffle maker so I'm excited to use it. Although, my mum is probably going to kill me for buying another kitchen appliance... eek!

Waffle Kimchi Fried rice

makes 2 large waffles

1 cup kimchi chopped into bits (use cabbage kimchi centers and not the leaves)
1/4 cup kimchi juice

3 cloves of garlic, minced

1/2 small onion, chopped finely

1/2 jalapeño, chopped finely

1-2 tbsp gochujang/Korean chili paste (according to taste)

3 tsp sesame oil

2-3 cups day-old rice, cold
sesame seed, dried nori, green onion (optional)
fried egg

1. Fry garlic until fragrant, add onions and jalapeño and let it sweat a little (~2 mins)
2. Add kimchi and saute until softened (2-3 mins). Add gochujang and mix until homogenous
3. Add cold rice and break it up thoroughly. Drizzle in kimchi juice
4. Saute and toss frequently for 5 mins. Adding sesame oil and a handful of chopped green onion at the last minute (you want your rice to be a little more dry than usual - for waffling)
5. Let it cool or stick it in the fridge for a while (skipping this step is fine but waffles are more to fall apart)
6. Preheat waffle machine. I don't have fancy one so it is all 1 heat setting. Stuff the machine with more kimchi fried rice waffle "batter" than usual. You will squish it all down and the outside will crisp up. I kept it in my waffle maker for 3-4 minutes.
7. Enjoy with a fried egg on top! 

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Bulgogi Nachos w/ Zesty Salsa

Did you know it is going to be National Nacho day on November 6th?  I really shouldn't be blogging. More like memorizing bacteria that causes bloody diarrhea and your colon lining to slough off. Ooh appetizing! Anyway, here's a fully loaded nacho recipe for game day and just general nomming.

I kind of cheated because I had pre-marinaded bulgogi. But I will be putting up a marinade recipe soon (maybe)! We were a little skeptical if all the flavors would go together, but it TOTALLY does. We gobbled it up super quickly and I burned the roof of my tongue from the cheese. wah...

Bulgogi Nachos w/ Zesty Salsa

makes a lot of salsa, serves 4-6

Ingredients for Zesty Salsa
3 tomatoes, seeded and diced
1 red onion, diced
1 bundle cilantro, minced
juice and zest of 3 limes
2 jalapenos (your preference of spicy)
salt and pepper

Toppings:
1 pound marinated Bulgogi, cooked
tortilla chips
handful of cheese (Mexican blend or creamy queso)
Sour cream

**edit: bulgogi marinade Click here!

1. Prepare all the ingredients for the salsa, mix it all together (tastes delicious when its been chilled for a bit)
2. Pile tortilla chips on a baking dish, next top it off with bulgogi and sprinkle massive amounts of cheese
3. Stick under a broiler until the cheese has melted (~5mins)
4. Serve with dollops of sour cream and the salsa

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