Vegan Japchae Recipe

I'm not really one for New Year's Resolutions unless food is involved - it was a goal years ago to go vegetarian and then vegan, which did happen. I want to post more recipes and food experiments on the blog, since I've realized how much cooking and baking (and then eating!) relaxes me. Plus it's fun.

My dad's co-worker gave him a bag of Dangymeon (Korean glass noodles made from sweet potato starch) before I left for London, and I then happened to try the dish at a vegan restaurant in the city. I fell in love with its colorful, comforting taste, so I prepared it for Christmas Eve dinner with my family based on a recipe from the aforementioned colleague. This time around I used whatever veggies I had on hand, thus I omitted a few ingredients, but I'll give the original, more authentic recipe.

VEGAN JAPCHAE - makes roughly two large servings

Ingredients:
-Dangymeon noodles (I used 1/3 of the pack)
-Olive oil
-Fresh spinach
-Two or three carrots, julienned
-One red pepper, finely chopped
-One yellow onion, sliced into long pieces
-Green onion, sliced vertically then horizontally
-Shiitake mushrooms*
-Two cloves garlic, minced
-Soy sauce
-Sesame oil
-Toasted sesame seeds
-A block of tofu, drained and pressed, then cut into cubes

*You can use fresh, dried, or canned mushrooms. If using dried, I'd recommend soaking these prior to starting cooking, since it takes a while. Then slice into smaller pieces. If using fresh, just slice them. If using canned, rinse.

1. Parboil the spinach, then drain. Put it in a large bowl, then toss with sesame oil, soy sauce, and sesame seeds.
2. In a wok, saute the onions in olive oil until clear and fragrant, then add to bowl.
3. Use the same process for the carrots, red pepper, and green onion.
4. Saute the garlic until fragrant, then add mushrooms. Add to the bowl.
5. Mix all vegetables in the bowl.
6. Cook the noodles according to the directions on the package, drain.
7. In a separate pan, cook the tofu in oil until golden on each side. Add soy sauce or teriyaki sauce, then cook a bit longer.
8. In the hot wok with a little oil, add all vegetables and the noodles, but not the tofu.
9. Heat thoroughly, then add soy sauce, sesame oil, and sesame seeds.
10. Top dish with tofu, then eat!

I have modified this dish slightly from the original recipe, but I think overall the integrity remains intact. By no means am I an expert on Korean food or cooking, but it's pretty similar to the serving I tried at Itadaki Zen in London. Even if it's not entirely authentic, it's still pretty good!

What recipes are you eager to try this year?

xox Catherine

What I've Been Up To: eBay Shoe Shopping Spree, Summer Cooking, and Nokia N8

Well, as this post title implies, I've been up to everything except blogging. Kidding. I've actually been lounging around way too much, sleeping non-stop, etc. But of course I squeezed in some time for shoe shopping and cooking.

Stella McCartney has been one of my favorite designers for quite some time, and I've been dying to get my hands, er, feet, on a pair of her shoes since then. She doesn't use fur or leather, and I'm uncomfortable buying leather unless it's pre-worn or sustainably made. And shall I mention her stellar designs? My go-to flat sandal are falling apart, so I decided it was time for a new pair. At $50, I'd say I did well!





And then there's the See by Chloe's, which is slightly ironic since McCartney used to design for Chloe. Must say something about my tastes! There's a chip on one of the sandals, and they were going for $100 but I made an offer for $50. And voila. My first pair of wedge sandals, which is weird since I have so many damn shoes, it seems.




And now for... a recent summery food concoction! Yellow squash and zucchini with angel hair pasta - I based this off a recipe from People, of all publications, but it's super easy that it barely needs a recipe. But since it's so delicious, I'll share!





Ingredients:
1 small/medium yellow squash
1 small/medium zucchini
1/5 box of spaghetti, angel hair, or whatever type of pasta
olive oil
1/2 tablespoon fresh chopped mint
2 cloves garlic
salt and pepper, to taste
bread crumbs, optional

Preheat the oven to 450 degrees, and put vegetables on a baking sheet. Drizzle with olive oil, and use salt and pepper. Bake for 7 minutes, stir, then another 6 minutes. Remove from oven.

In a saute pan, heat up a tablespoon of olive oil on medium-low heat, then add garlic. Cook until fragrant. Add the vegetables and mint, cook for a few minutes. Set to low heat.

Cook the pasta using directions on box, and when ready, drain and reserve 1/4 cup of the water. Add pasta to the pan, and add water. Cook until it begins to simmer.

Add bread crumbs if desired, and eat!

It's easy and perfect for summer - I used a zucchini from my neighbor, and mint from my parent's garden! Hopefully once our zucchinis come up I can make this more often!

And coming up soon on the blog...




A review of the Nokia N8! I've still yet to take a few more photos, but expect it soon!

xox Catherine

PS A spontaneous beach trip for the evening = probably postponed Weekly Favorites. Whoops.

4.9.11

Necklace - thrifted, shirt - Olive and Olivia, cuff - antique, skirt - vintage, tights - Target, boots - Spring

I was a bit disappointed that I couldn't take photos outside because I'm actually pretty fond of this outfit. But I didn't even get home until 7pm and by then it was sort of dark and so it goes. Ignore my messy room. I need to do laundry so badly, but I've been too lazy. In fact, this is an "I-have-nothing-to-wear/I-need-to-do-laundry" outfit.




The other day, I made a pizza with vegan cheese. I've never been too fond of cheese, so it was kind of weird to use a vegan/"fake" version. But it was good. I need to work on the crust, though. I used whole wheat flour, so maybe that made it a little too dense, but I'll definitely try it again.



Seriously, I'm on a food spree. It's not that I'm even bored of what I eat on lazy days - pasta with garlicky sauteed broccoli - but it's fun to be creative with it. Within the past week and half, I've made avocado-infused salsa, pad Thai, lemony pasta with veggies, yaki udon, kale chips (new obsession, perhaps) and probably tons more. I'm obsessed. I need to start photographing my concoctions to show you guys! And to prove that vegan food isn't necessarily hippie food.

EDIT 10:30 - I've since made chocolate sherbet and pasta and asparagus in a jerk sauce. Hell yeah.

xox Catherine

Saturday night rambling with that Silhouette Girl

People tend to doubt my eating capabilities until they actually sit down and consume food with me. I indulged in several delectable treats today - brunched at the White Dog Cafe for my friend's birthday (I ordered orange ginger tofu, he ordered a smoked ham sandwich and declared it the best sandwich he's ever had) and baked yet another apple pie. And now I'm thinking about how good vegetables and curry would be right now.



...also, I made a vlog. V-log? Vlog? Now instead of reading my rambling, you can listen to it! I like to believe on the awkward spectrum, I lie away from painful and closer to endearing. I'm not sure that's the case.