silverstein

Shel Silverstein is one of my favorite children's authors/poets. Sometimes I think I read too much into his writing...but mostly I think we're just on the same page. :) Here is some Shel for your afternoon.

I asked the Zebra,
are you black with white stripes?
Or white with black stripes?
And the zebra asked me,
Are you good with bad habits? Or are you bad with good habits?
Are you noisy with quiet times?
Or are you quiet with noisy times?
Are you happy with some sad days?
Or are you sad with some happy days?
Are you neat with some sloppy ways?
Or are you sloppy with some neat ways?
And on and on and on and on and on and on he went.
I'll never ask a zebra about stripes...again.

. . .

My skin is kind of sort of brownish yellowish white.
My eyes are greyish blueish green, but I'm told they look orange in the night.
My hair is reddish blondish brown, but its silver when its wet, and all the colors I am inside have not been invented yet.

. . .

There is a place where the sidewalk ends
And before the street begins,
And there the grass grows soft and white,
And there the sun burns crimson bright,
And there the moon-bird rests from his flight
To cool in the peppermint wind.

Let us leave this place where the smoke blows black
And the dark street winds and bends.
Past the pits where the asphalt flowers grow
We shall walk with a walk that is measured and slow,
And watch where the chalk-white arrows go
To the place where the sidewalk ends.

Yes we'll walk with a walk that is measured and slow,
And we'll go where the chalk-white arrows go,
For the children, they mark, and the children, they know
The place where the sidewalk ends.

fruit+cheese

I spoke too soon about those illusive warm summer nights. Last night was 80 degrees at 9pm...and spent well with good friends, girl talk and frozen yogurt.

Anyways, here's an ode to summer fruits and tasty cheeses. A curious and delicious combination I never experimented with much before. Although the more I think about it, just makes sense--brie and jam, tomatoes and mozzarella.

My boss (who you'll hear me mention quite a bit--I steal all her recipes) brought in fresh picked figs and whipped us up a simple salad.


You'll need:
Fresh figs
Arugula
Goat cheese
Prosciutto
Balsamic Vinegar
Extra Virgin Olive Oil
S+P

Pre-heat oven to 275 degrees.
Slice figs in half. Spread a layer of goat cheese on the open side of the fig and wrap the whole thing in a piece of prosciutto. Warm prosciutto wrapped fig in the oven for just a few minutes, till goat cheese is softened (just a 1-2 minutes).
In a bowl, toss arugula leaves in a olive oil and S+P.

To arrange, place some of the arugula leaves on bowl or plate. Place fig on top and drizzle with balsamic vinegar. It's the perfect combination and would make a great appetizer or snack. (Thanks Karena!)


Had this Watermelon & Feta Salad at an event at work. (I loved the little glasses they were served in...such a fun idea!)


Combine:
Watermelon, cut into cubes
Feta Cheese crumbles
Fresh Basil cut into strips
Pepper
a splash of Balsamic Vinegar (optional)

Do you guys have a favorite cheese and fruit combination?

vegas

We celebrated a dear friend's birthday this weekend in Vegas. Though it wasn't a far trip, it was nice to get away for a few days in the company of good friends. Happy birthday J!

Feel: Vegas was HOT...and I loved it! I finally got my warm (read: hot) summer nights that seemed to escape me this summer (though not over yet). I loved stepping out at night with no need for a jacket, not even just in case. :)

See: The biggest H&M I've ever stepped foot in. 3 stories, collections I've never seen before, and disco balls!

Hear: The buzzing of different languages and accents all around. It's always interesting to meet and hear where people are visiting from. I always forget that Vegas is somewhat of an international destination...not just a party city for college students on school break.

Taste/Smell: My favorite meal in Vegas was at Grimaldi's Pizza. I'm going to make a lofty statement here and say it is the best New York style pizza on this side of the coast! (Disagree? What are your favorite pizza places? This pizza connoisseur would love to know!) We ordered a few kinds, but the best one by far was the marinara pizza with pepperoni, garlic, and onions. Sounds so simple right? Nope, the flavors are deep, the ingredients are fresh, and it's tossed and prepared right in front of you. (man, I could go for one right now). It's a ten minute drive from the strip, but definitely worth the trip.
And I'm strangely growing a taste for coffee more and more these days (though I never cared for it before). This affegato from Illy at the Venetian was delicious...I think it was more the gelato inside than it was the coffee though. :)

{temperature}

35,000 ft. in the air

Bye for now, Korea!


I love Korean Air.


Touching down in Japan (NRT) for a quick layover. The view outside was gorgeous.


Clouds somewhere over the Pacific

postcards from korea

I'll be wrapping up my Korea posts this week...2 months later. -_- (that's my Korean emoticon for a sheepish face)

Restaurants and bars line the streets in Seoul. I love all the little decorations, themes, and details each place had to set them apart from the place next door...

Korea's greenery is so lush, vibrant and colorful. My mom is always noticing and noting pretty flowers on walks at home; I found myself doing the same in Korea.

We had galbi-jim for our dinner in Seoul, courtesy of our friend James, who currently lives in Seoul and maintains a website of great eateries. Check it out here for the details of this restaurant and other tasty recommendations.

My favorite street food in Korea--Ddukbokki (rice cakes in a spicy sauce). The key to good ddukkbokki is the rice cakes. Good rice cakes should be chewy; not too hard, which means they are undercooked; and not overly soft and mushy. The ones I had in Korea never failed. I imagine this to be so satisfying on a cold winter day. You can find these served piping hot at the Pojangmachas that line the streets.

Shopping is everywhere in Seoul. Feels like each neighborhood has a unique style of shops and some sort of specialty. One of my favorite neighborhoods was Hongdae; had some great meals there, took some interesting walks, and purchased the most comfortable pair of hand crafted heels from this store called Piacere.

Variations on a theme.

More food. My goodness. Dessert waffles and brick honey toast (not pictured) are a must!

spicy beef salad

I love Thai food--papaya salad, chewy noodles, spicy, complex flavors, family style eating with lots of friends. (I think I just decided what's for dinner tomorrow).
I never ventured to cook Thai food at home--it always tasted to difficult to try. But after taking a cooking class on my last trip to Thailand, I was surprised to find that it's not as complicated as I expected.

For this Spicy Beef Salad, you'll need:

1/2 lb grilled beef filet
1-2 pieces of broccoli stalk
1-2 cucumbers

Sauce:
6 tbsp fish sauce
4 tbsp sugar
10 hot chilis or red chilis (use less if you'd like it less spicy)
4-5 cloves minced garlic
2 tspn coriander root (if you can't find coriander root, you can substitute with 4 tsp chopped cilantro stems)
8 tbsp lemon juice

1) Heat oil in a pan. Grill beef to your liking.
2) Blend all the sauce ingredients in a blender till it looks like above
3) Slice beef, broccoli, and cucumber and arrange on a serving dish
4) Top beef with sauce and garnish with cilantro. Light and satisfying. Enjoy!