Tag Archives: grill

Memorial Day 2016

Unfortunately our freedom today comes at the cost of all our brave fallen men and women lives. Memorial Day is a day dedicated to honoring those past heroes, and is also a day that is often confused with Veterans Day, where we honor our present heroes.

Today had me really thinking about how we are all very guilty of bumbling through life, acting as if all of our tomorrow’s are guaranteed….We Place our eggs in life’s irrelevant baskets, place our happiness in others emotional state/hands thus affecting our day-to-day. We place such a high value on life’s petty things such as, getting social media “likes”, or money. But why? So since days like Memorial Day are really good in your face reminders telling and showing us that our tomorrow isn’t guaranteed, please make sure to take some extra time and truly reflect on this day and send an extra thank you upstairs to those who have made the ultimate sacrifice and given us the opportunities of today and possibilities of our tomorrow’s.

Memorial Day has always been pegged as the “unofficial summer start”. Calendars show that the true summer season doesn’t actually arrive until later, however our warm Korean weather has been serenading us with a sweet summer song, plus kiddos are just as the cusp of breaking out of school and anywho like we all don’t need an excuse to get out and grill good food, and wear our patriotic pride colors!

Just because we’re in Korea doesn’t mean that we aren’t festive too! We try to uphold picnic and holiday traditions, just on a smaller scale. For our mini Memorial Day picnic feast, I prepared Mr. B’s Aunt Gail deliciously famous macaroni salad, the Mr. grilled a variety of big ol’ sausages and we slathered them with Coleman’s mustard, we munched on my grandmas homemade pickle recipe, and enjoyed the non-traditional side of Armenian eggplant clavier (we’re just a teeny bit obsessed). Dessert was honey pound cake topped with fresh vanilla whipped cream and local strawberries (But guess what? Our bellies were so full, we had to save them for tomorrow.)

Poor bumblebee….just a tall order of milk for now, lol!

^Cannot resist those baby belly buttons and leg rolls!

‘Merica! Love from the Bees!

Savory: Yuca Home Fries

Wait…. hold the press…. Can you really make home fries without potatoes?

Yes.

Have you ever heard of yuca root? Perhaps casssava might ring a bell? Still no?

No worries…. Me too, until recently when Mr. B and I stumbled upon some waxy yuca for sale. I’ll admit I had seen it there before, always curious and pondering as to what it was and how someone would prepare it.

We used our trusty source Google. (Go ahead Google it too). We found out that there were some surprisingly outstanding benefits to eating yuca root. For starters it’s a great source of vitamin C, phosphorous, and calcium. Yuca is also high in fiber and plays a crucial part in good intestinal health. Can’t get better than that, right? Wrong, it gets better!

My fellow followers, the tasteeeee! It was just AS GOOD as the typical American carbolicious comfort of home fries we grew up on. If it wasn’t for yuca being a tad bit starchier, I honestly don’t think I’d be able to tell the difference.

We recently bought a griddle for our teeny tiny Korean stove top. Essentially this griddle is for a grill, however it works quite nicely for us in our kitchen. Sunday morning came around and we thought how perfectly the new adventures of yuca and the new griddle would work together.

We really do not have a recipe per say. Just treat yuca like you would a potato. Get rid of the waxy exterior, process in a food processor, or chop by hand how you’d like your home fries. Next heat up some safflower oil, or your favorite oil on your griddle, or large pan and fry those babies up! Don’t forget a side of bacon and dippy eggs with cheese too.

Looking back, thinking about the incredible aromas wafting from our kitchen, it was as if we were in an episode of Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives (Triple D!) grease splatter and all. We like to keep it rather authentic like that. HA-HA, yeah our good friends know that only 5 seconds would pass and Mrs. B would be running around like a mad woman wiping it up immediately.

Have you ever made or tried yuca? We’d love to know some recipe ideas if you’d be willing to share.

Let Them Eat Cake and Celebrate!

Ooohhh you guys, just wait until you hear about the cake we ate! (More on that shortly, promise)

I joked a few weeks back and said, I believe Korea has went straight from the bitter cold, frosty, parka wearing temps, straight into the hot, muggy, hazy, summer month. Well, that’s no joke around these parts. We have fans running, weekly tall frappuccino orders placed to go, and tan lines to prove it. No complaints here, none. Well, maybe just one.. sweet corn from good old Pennsylvania! Hey! I’m a summer girl through and through. I love being able to get out and about.

Speaking of getting out and about…the past weekend was my work picnic. Nothing like the sound of a baseball game in the background, and some brats, burgers, and dogs on the grill to scream summer. We had such a good time! So much food! Who would have thought kimchi would be a normal side dish at a picnic? Welcome to Korea. Nevertheless, it was quite delicious and spicy, just the way we Bees like it.

Back to this cake that I initially spoke of. I baked from scratch one of the most delightful cakes we’ve ever had. Ready for this? Eek! Tiramisu cake! Yes! Very special days call for very special treats. Happy 6 years of marriage to us! Thank you all so much for the cards, and sweet messages wishing us all the best. We truly appreciate your love and support. We say our cheers to another 100+ more just like the first 6!

I know you want me to share the recipe of this cake I’ve been raving on about. Share I will! I found this recipe on Nectar and only altered it slightly by going with a different wine. Otherwise, word for word, I got my bake on exactly the same. Mmmm trust me, the hard work is completely worth it in the end. The folks over at Nectar surly know their way around a kitchen.

The tiramisu birthday cake: (recipe taken straight from Nectar)

The cake:

~ 13 T butter

~ 1 c. sugar

~ 1/3 c. honey

~ 2 eggs

~ 3 yolks

~ 1 t. strong brewed espresso

~ 1 t. vanilla

~ 1/2 c. milk

~ 2 c. flour

~ 2 t. baking powder

prepare two 9-inch baking rounds with butter, flour and parchment paper and set aside. beat the butter and sugar until it is light and fluffy. add the honey and continue to mix. in another bowl whip the eggs, yolks, espresso, vanilla and milk – set this aside. in another bowl, sift the flour and baking powder together. add a bit of the egg mixture to the butter and then a bit of the flour – continue this until the batter is thoroughly mixed and ribbons when you pour it. divide is equally between the two baking pans and bake in the center of the oven for 25 minutes. let stand for 5-10 minutes before turning the layers out onto a cooling rack.

filling number 1:

~ 1/4 c. marsala {sweet italian wine}

~ 1/4 c. strong brewed espresso

whisk together and set aside.

filling number 2:

part one:

~ 7 egg yolks

~ 1/4 c. sugar

~ 8 oz. mascarpone

~ 4 oz. cream cheese

~ 1 T. strong brewed espresso

whip the yolks and sugar together until they become thick and pale. add the mascarpone, cream cheese and espresso. whip until fully incorporated. pour into another bowl and chill.

part two:

~ 1 pt. heavy cream

~ 1/2 c. sugar

~ 2 T. strong brewed espresso

~ 2 T. marsala

combine all ingredients and whip until stiff peaks have formed. remove part one of filling number two from the refrigerator and gently fold – adding small amounts at a time – the mixture into the heavy cream mixture. be gentle as you do not want to lose the air that you whipped into the cream.

filling number 3:

~ 6 oz. roughly chopped semi-sweet chocolate

~ 1 t. espresso grounds

assembly:

when the cakes are cool enough to handle, use a serrated knife to cut off the top round part of the layers – exposing the interior of the cake. place the first layer on a cake platter or serving dish. using a pastry brush – gently brush/dot the espresso and marsala mixture over the top of the cake. top with 1/3 of the cream/mascarpone mixture and spread gently – let it pour over the edges of the cake. sprinkle 1/2 of the chopped chocolate over the mixture – then add another 1/3 of the mixture on top the chocolate. top this with the other cake layer. using the remaining espresso/marsala mixture – brush this layer as well. top with remaining cream/mascarpone and sprinkle the chocolate over the top. using a fine sieve – dust the top with the espresso. let set up in the fridge for at least an hour before cutting into the cake.

Enjoy!

Labor Day Weekend

We survived the typhoon. I apologize for not updating and posting that in a more timely manner. Most of the storm took it’s toll on the southern portion of the peninsula. Thankfully it wasn’t nearly as bad as they had predicted it to be. Unfortunately there were some casualties, our hearts and prayers go out to their families.

I can’t believe I’m saying this already, Friday was the “unofficial” last day of the summer. Labor Day marks we Americans last chance to extend everything we love about the summer months, i.e. wearing white pants, throwing Backyard BBQ’s, doing yard work, watching fireworks, getting in the last beach trips of the season, and the best for last, just our patriotic excuse to get together with family and friends.

Labor Day is quite different in Korea… For starters it’s a US holiday and is not recognized in the Korean culture. The typical patriotic feel from past years being at home isn’t quite there as well.

That’s okay! We took full advantage of the downtime and extended weekend. We quickly realized that it’s you who creates the mood and feel for each holiday or celebration. Near, far, wherever you are. Hope you were able to make the most of it too!

We drove to the East Coast. It seriously looked like Seattle, don’t you agree?

Mr.B enjoyed multiple days of scuba diving.

I tagged along too, read the entire book my best friend sent me in my birthday package. (Thanks again B)

Dug my toes into the sand.

Played with this cute little guy on the beach, well..until it bit me…Eek!

Watched the surfers in the waves, secretly wanting to join…maybe ill work the nerve up sometime in my life.

Ahhh… there is just something so relaxing about the beach!

Speaking of summer lasts… I enjoyed what I believe may be my last potbingsu…

on the beach…

in white short…

Just kidding, I had jean shorts on. Talk about almost enjoying the apoditimy of summer in one sitting. All that was missing was the hum of lawn mowers, the smells of freshly cut grass and burgers on the grill lofting in the air, and fireworks lighting up the sky. For the moment I was reminded of home.

We did grill out the first night at the beach. Our friend Alan is a master grill sergeant! He used a rustic Korean grill..I should have snapped pictures to share with you. When I say rustic I’m talking really, really, rustic. No complaints here, he grilled up really tasty chicken kabobs and we are still alive to tell the tale, HA-HA! I think you would have enjoyed it too, perhaps next time you can join us?

The second night we “grilled” I use the word in quotes because techincally yes we did grill, however we did it at a Korean BBQ restaurant. Hey! It counts, right? We had a blast story telling and enjoying good food with our friends.

The weather was much cooler these past few days. There is a real sense of Fall in the air. The humidity is slowly moving out of the weather forecast too. You think the weather stopped these diehard divers? Nope. wet suits and smiles is all I witnessed getting on and off the dive boats each day.

Happy Labor Day!

Grab the map coordinates here .