Saturday, November 22, 2014

What's for Lunch?

Because of our schedules (we both work 2pm-9/10pm) I usually cook us a hot lunch and then we take sandwiches or leftovers for supper.

We went shopping at HomePlus today. It's a British owned store and we can usually find a good bit of western groceries. It's a little further away and a bit pricier as well so we try to only go every 2-3 months.

Here's what we've got coming up over the next two weeks:

Sunday- Duck, Mashed Potatoes and Beans
Monday- Chicken Curry Rice with Mandu
Tuesday- Tuna Noodle Casserole
Wednesday Smothered Chicken and Gravy with Potatoes
Thursday- Leftovers
Friday- Ham Steaks, Broccoli and Potato Wedges
Saturday- Breakfast (lunch )Leftovers or Out (dinner)

Sunday- Spicy Pork Stir-fry with  Broccoli and Sweet Potatoes
Monday- Samgypsal and Mandu
Tuesday - Beef Chili
Wednesday- Beef Roast/Steak with Potato Wedges
Thursday- Leftovers

Hopefully I can squeeze in one more meal of leftovers as I won't be shopping until 9:30pm Friday night! Or Maybe we'll have another breakfast. 01 02 12

Wednesday, November 12, 2014

Ramblings From A Peson Locked in a Hospital

Yesterday I was admitted to the hospital with pneumonia. I'm having a ball, let me tell you.

I turned off the heat in my room because it was smoking hot and now every nurse asks me if I'm cold.

They have communal shower shoes....doesn't that defeat the purpose of shower shoes?

Mike had to run out and get soap for my bathroom.

Today I had to go down to the 2nd floor for a CT scan. As I'm slipping on my sneakers the nurse freaks out and insists I wear the shower shoes. Never mind that they are made for Bigfoot and I have the feet of Thumbelina. And I lose a shoe before we're even out of the room and trip over them again in the hallway. Yeah, these are definitely safer.

More later, I'm sure.

Oh, and they woke me up before sunrise to get my IV started for the day. I was thrilled. Still am, can't you tell? 01 02 12

Wednesday, November 5, 2014

Korean House Warming Party

I teach a group of women on Wednesday nights. One of the class members recently moved to a new apartment so last night we held our class there as sort of a housewarming party.

I entered the apartment to a chorus of welcomes and a strange whacking noise.

I peered around the refrigerator to find one of my students whacking away at a live octopus.

Octopus

"Come here. Come look", she beckoned me. Another octopus sat in a Styrofoam cooler filled with water. She picked it up, straightened it's tentacles and studied my face as I watched the tentacles dance.

The table was set with fried chicken, bread, shrimp, salad, Korean "cookies" and octopus three ways. We could choose from boiled octopus head, boiled tentacles or raw, still squirming bits and bobs of octopus. Having had my fill of octopus many years ago, during my first trip to Korea, I focused this time on the chicken, shrimp and salad. Both were delicious.

However, everyone was extremely worried about me going hungry since I was not partaking in the octopus.  After I explained my issue with the texture, one of my students said , "That's okay. Just pretend it's gum that is very good for your health. Chew it and just think 'good for my health, good for my health'" .

Stylized Animals  3
We ate and chatted...mostly about the new apartment and out host's endeavor to sew curtains and an air conditioner cover.  What's this you ask?

Most of Korea doesn't have central air so home owners and renters but these huge standing air units. Our hosts came in a bright purple and occupied the corner opposite the big screen TV.

Overall we had a good night and laughed a lot during our study (as usual). 01 02 12

Monday, November 3, 2014

Ewww....Persimmons

Okay, I don't think persimmons are eww.


I just think they taste like nothing.


If you know me, then you know I'm a flavor gal. If I'm going to eat something I want it to have lots of flavor. My favorite cake is lemon with chocolate frosting and blueberry filling. Lots of flavor going on in that one. Are you catching a ride on the flavor train?

So, when my sweet neighbor presented me with a bag of 10 persimmons I freaked. And by freaked, I mean I went on a pinterest and googling safari.

And I found many good looking recipes for jams and fruit butter but all of them required the persimmons be pureed, and I don't know if you've seen my kitchen, but that's not happening in here.

Anyway, I finally stumbled upon this delicious sounding recipe from Cook Play Explore.

So, I adapted it to fit my current living situation. Here we go:

8 persimmons, peeled and chopped
8 tablespoons water, divided
4 tablespoons honey
2 capfulls of orange juice
about 2 tablespoons cinnamon
4 teaspoons flour

Combine  persimmons, 4 tablespoons water, honey, and orange juice in a saucepan and  bring to a boil over medium heat (for 5 minutes). Reduce heat to medium-low, add cinnamon, and simmer for 10 minutes. Stir occasionally.

In a small bowl, combine flour and remaining four tablespoons of water. Add to fruit in pan and stir until thickened. Remove from heat and cool before storing.

I let mine sit in the fridge overnight. Then, I mixed it with my plain yogurt. It was scrumdiddlyumptious! 

What do you do with your persimmons?


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