Ddukguk (Rice Cake Soup) Recipe

Ddukguk is one of my favorite childhood dishes. It is served on special occasions (such as New Year's Day) and also everyday occasions. It's very simple to make and requires basic ingredients. I left out a couple ingredients, but it still tasted fine. Click here for an original recipe.

Ingredients:

• 1 14 oz. can of chicken broth
• 3/4 cup of sliced rice cakes
• handful of baby carrots
• 1 bunch of scallions
• pepper and nori to taste

1. Boil chicken broth and rice cakes in pot. Lower temperature to medium-low heat after it boils.

 2. Place carrots into broth. Cook for about ten minutes or until rice cakes are fully cooked (I like them past al dente).
3. Then season with scallions, pepper, and pieces of nori to taste.

I know I left out a few key ingredients such as the fish sauce and sesame oil. I like to tackle cooking from memory, and I didn't check the recipe when I was cooking. Oops! But it turned out fine and saved a lot of time. Wait for the soup to cool a bit before you eat.

Curry In A Hurry

Japanese curry is an amazingly simple and delicious dish to make. The main ingredients you need are the curry mix and whatever vegetables you want to throw in (sometimes I like to use a combination of fresh and frozen veggies - saves prep time). I usually just follow the recipe on the box of the curry mix as a rough guideline. It's really hard to mess up the recipe - if the curry is too savory, add more water.. if it's a little bland, add more mix!

Ingredients:

• 1/2 package of curry mix (I usually use Vermont Curry in Medium-Hot, 8.8 oz)
• 3/4 cup chicken (or whatever meat you want to use)
• 3-4 potatoes, peeled and diced
• 1/2 onion, chopped
• 1/2 cup of baby carrots
• 1/2 cup of frozen mixed vegetables
• 3 cups of water

1. Cut meat and saute in saucepan until lightly brown.
2. Throw in onions, potatoes and carrots.
2. Add water until boiling and then lower the heat to medium-low. Cook for 20 minutes.

Serve over rice. Voila! Since this dish makes several servings, it's a great option for when you're having guests over or you just want to save some for leftovers.

Sunday Morning and Home Potato Fries

I really enjoy Sunday mornings mainly because I have a routine of eating breakfast, going out for a walk and getting ready for church.

One of my favorite breakfast meals is french toast. And it's relatively easy to make! You can add more stuff to make them fancy, but a simple egg base will do.

French Toast
Ingredients:

• 1 1/2 slices of whole wheat bread
  
• 1 egg
• maple syrup
• cinnamon (optional)

1. Mix the egg in a small bowl.
2. Place a slice of bread into the whisked egg to absorb. Flip over to the other side. Repeat for the remaining half slice. (1 1/2 slices of bread should absorb one large egg).
3. Lightly coat the pan with spray or oil. Place bread on the pan until toasted brown. Flip over to cook the opposite side.
4. Serve with maple syrup and sprinkle cinnamon on top.


Voila!

Home Potato Fries
Ingredients:

• 3 Idaho potatoes
• 1-2 tbs of cooking oil
  
• Salt and pepper to taste
• Ketchup

1. Rinse and peel potatoes. Soak potatoes in water for a bit for better cooking.
2. Cube potatoes
3. Coat the pan with about 2 tbs of oil (I used olive oil, but anything will do). Place cubed potatoes onto pan and season with salt and pepper.
4. Cover pan with lid and cook for 10 minutes.
5. Remove lid and cook for another 10 minutes or until slightly brown.

I think I ate two potatoes worth of fries in one sitting. No reservations, all gut.

Anyway, this blog started out as a fashion blog, but now it's turning into a food blog! I'm usually the type who likes to cook and make a big batch of food for the week. However lately I've been having strange cravings and a strong desire to be a little bit more adventurous with my cooking. Well, here's to new beginnings!

Butternut Squash Soup

Alas, I am not a cook. My strength lies in baking, but I mustered up the courage to make one of my favorite soups: Butternut Squash Soup. It's relatively easy to make, but it takes a long time to prepare.


Ingredients:

• 2 tablespoons olive oil
  
• 1 small onion, chopped
• 1/2 package of baby carrots
  
• 2 medium potatoes, cubed
• 1 medium butternut squash - peeled, seeded, and cubed
• 1 (14 fluid ounce) container chicken stock
• 14 fluid ounce of water
• 1 (14 fluid ounce) container of tomato sauce
  
• garlic salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

1. Pour the olive oil in a large pot, and cook the onion, carrot, potatoes, and squash 5 minutes, or until lightly browned. Pour in chicken stock, water, and tomato sauce to cover vegetables. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low, cover pot, and simmer 40 minutes, or until all vegetables are tender.
2. Transfer the soup to a blender, and blend until smooth. Return to pot, and mix in any remaining stock to attain desired consistency. Season with salt and pepper.

(Modified from this recipe.) The one thing I like about making soup is that it's very forgiving (like baking) if you don't have certain ingredients. You can opt out of adding a particular ingredient you don't have or substituting something similar such as tomato sauce instead of peeled tomatoes.

(After it's been pureed.)

Bon Appetit!

Trick: You can freeze half of it in the freezer since this calls for a big batch. This is helpful if you are cooking for one like me!