coffee morning

every other week, my office has coffee morning. people take turns bringing different foods to enjoy with coffee or tea. i think it's an excuse to take a 30 minute break during the day. but hey, i'm not complaining. i look forward to coffee morning.

today, thomas made a delicious german hazelnut cake. when i saw it, i said,"oh, you made a bundt cake!"

he replied, "a what?"

this moment reminded me of the bundt cake scene from my big fat greek wedding.
"it's a bundt."
"a boont?"
"a bundt."
"a bonk? bonk."
"a bundt."
"it's a cake!"

anyway, back to the cake. it had a delicious slightly chewy texture with a marbled hazelnut flavoring.

i exercised self-control and only had one small slice. maybe i should have had another.

koreatown of london

i found out that this one area outside of london is their version of koreatown. so i emailed out friends/colleagues to see who wants to take a visit to new malden. three of them decided that they wanted to join me on this korean adventure.

first, we went to jee's restaurant new malden for some lunch. since i was the only korean speaker, i ordered for everyone. we started off with a seafood pancake (hae mul pah jun) for appetizer. then we ordered kimchi chigae (for me), daen jang chigae - miso soup for kitty, dol sot bi bim bap for linda and yook gae jang for bridget. they all loved it! i was actually the only one who was disappointed with my kimchi chigae. however, i enjoyed seeing them so happy.

after lunch, we headed for korea foods supermarket. this was so much bigger than the tiny korean market i found in london a few weeks before. not only did they have korean foods, but they also had chinese, japanese, and thai cuisine.

i was like a kid in a candy store! one of the things i had to buy was a little jar (300g=10.5 oz) of kimchi. i was a bit hesitant to buy it b/c i live with two non-asians. i didn't want to scare them by the kimchi smell, but i gave in and bought the kimchi. for those who are unfamiliar, kimchi has a very distinct strong odor. to the korean, we are all accustomed to this smell that permeates throughout the home especially the refrigerator. but to a foreigner, it could smell like something has been rotten for years.

tonight, i had a bowl of korean ramen with mandoo (dumplings) and dukk (rice cake). but you can't have ramen without kimchi. so i decided it was time to introduce my housemates to the wonderful smell of kimchi. when i opened the jar, i announced to them that it was time for kimchi. they actually weren't offended by the smell at all! so you know what that means? a bigger jar of kimchi for next time.

yeah! i can have kimchi at home here in england.

banoffee pie

while watching jamie again, he did this easy banoffee pie. what's in banoffee pie? toffee, banana and whipped cream. yum!

who said i couldn't find good food in england? i'm just thankful i found jamie! it is a learning experience as i try to figure out what things are, but i enjoy it.

here's the recipe below. (the measurements are in metric so you'll have to convert for those in the US.)

• 4 heaped tbsp golden caster sugar (basically regular sugar)
  
• 4 ripe bananas
• 100ml semi-skimmed milk
• 1 pre-made sweet pastry case (approx. 200g) (pre-made pastry shell)
  
• 300ml double cream (whipping cream)
  
• 1 tbsp Camp coffee (i skipped this ingredient.)
  
• 1 x 100g bar of good-quality dark chocolate (70 per cent cocoa solids), to serve

Put a medium frying pan on a high heat. Put 4 heaped tablespoons of golden caster sugar into the frying pan and shake the pan to spread it around. Let it melt while you peel 2 of the bananas and blitz them with 100ml of milk in a liquidizer until you have a smoothie consistency.

Carefully tilt the frying pan to help dissolve all the sugar. Once bubbling and golden, pour in the banana mixture. Do not touch anything in the pan - caramel is very hot and can burn badly. Keep stirring constantly, so it doesn’t catch, for 1 to 2 minutes, until dark and golden, then pour into the pastry case. Spoon and spread it around evenly, then carefully slide the pastry case on to a platter and put it into the freezer to cool down for a few minutes.

In a large bowl, whip the double cream with a balloon whisk until fairly thick. Lightly fold through 1 tablespoon of Camp coffee to get a marbled effect. Peel and finely slice your 2 remaining bananas at an angle. Get your filled base out of the freezer and top with slices of banana. Use a spatula to tip the cream on top of the pie. Scrape over a little dark chocolate and pop back into the freezer until ready to serve.

i heart jamie oliver

jamie oliver has a show over here in england called jamie's 30 minute meals. reminds me of rachael ray, but i find jamie is more enjoyable to watch.

i've already tried two of his recipes. he made berry ice cream which was sooo easy!
ingredients:

• 1 x 500g pack of mixed frozen berries
• 150g fresh blueberries
• 3 - 4 tbsp runny honey
• 1 x 500g tub of natural yoghurt
• Few sprigs of fresh mint

Put all ingredients into a food processor. Blend them for one minute. then place them in the freezer for about an hour. enjoy!

a year in england

sorry for the lack of posts recently. i've been in transition, and i've finally moved to england. will my blog continue? of course! will i find good food in england? that is the question.

so from now on.. it's susan's food diary, the UK version.