Bye Bye Seoul, Hello Beijing!

After 3 wonderfuly (and oft frustrating) years, I have left Seoul and made another journey to China to start my new home in Beijing.  First off, I was sad to leave as I had made a good circle of friends, had my favourite haunts and found a fabulous hairstylist (yes, these things are important!).  I had a nice nice little group of people who would occassionally order cupcakes from me and had good supply of baking products from Bangsan Market.

Now I am starting fresh in Beijing and I must say, so far it is a far easier place to live as compared to Seoul from a foreigner's perspective.  They have so many 'foreign' supermarkets with excellent stock of imported goods like Jenny Lou's, April Gourmet, BHG Marketplace and Ole to name a few.  Of course you have to pay a premium for the items but so did I in Korea.

Weather is cold though... really cold.  I only remember it being that cold in Korea around January but by November the low temperatures are hitting -8C.  Of course it helps that I speak some Chinese and I hope this will make it easier for me to find the best markets to go to and if I am lucky, I will find a little nook or street somewhere that sells baking and packaging stuff.

Boys Over Flowers... again?!

I have this habit of going to bed late and every once in awhile, I turn on the tv to numb my mind and what did I come across a few nights ago?  Boys Over Flowers, one of my favourite Korean dramas on the Olive channel.  Although this time it was without English subtitles, I can still remember the gist of what was happening so ended up watching it till the wee hours.  It made me want to dig up the show and watch the whole show again. 

I think there are many fans out there who also enjoyed the drama as evidenced by the amount of hits I get on the piano sheets pages.  Sorry guys, I am not going to scan the pages again or write the notes down for you.  The books are already tearing a little at the binding from the first scan.

Gu Jun Pyo!  Yoon Ji Hoo!  Fighting!

Resom Ocean Resort in Anmyeon-do

It's been awhile since I've posted but it hasn't slowed traffic to my site as my uploads of the Boys Over Flowers piano sheets seem to be high on the Google Search Engine! : ) I haven't been sight seeing much in Seoul except for an overnight trip to Anmyeon-do in Chungcheongnam-do last month. We stayed at the Resom Ocean Resort which was the equivalent of a 4 Star hotel. It has a very inviting and large lobby and several buildings of rooms.

We had a 2 bedroom apartment with a open kitchen and 1 bathroom that overlooked the sea. It was clean and well equipped. Nice flat screen tv in the living room then an old CRT tv in the bedroom. Bit of a contrast if you ask me. It kinda felt like they decided to just do with what budget they could at that moment.

The bedroom with the tv had a queen sized bed and the other room was the Korean style room where you put the bedding on the floor. The resort has an outdoor sauna but it was a bit cold to try it out. They call it an Aqua Park but don't expect anything like Sea World or Wet n Wild. It's actually like a Japanese Onsen where there are several pools with sulphur water pumped into them from the ground with healing properties for the skin.

There are several restaurants to choose from and one that serves very good sashimi. Expect to pay a lot for it though. There was a convenience store, bakery and a beautiful wooden deck where you can also dine when the weather is warmer.

Nearby there is a famous forest, the Anmyeon-do Recreational Forest with majestic trees that are quite beautiful to walk among. It is peaceful and a wonderful way to spend a few hours away from the hustle and bustle of the city.

I have pictures and will post them when I am back home (I'm on holiday now). The drive out there from Seoul is about 3 hours.


Useful links:

www.anmyonhuyang.go.kr

Chungcheongnam-do
http://www.visitkorea.or.kr/enu/SI/SI_EN_3_1_1_1.jsp?areaCode=34

Best Ever Bolognese Sauce

Every time I make this Bolognese Sauce I always get a request for the recipe. I owe this recipe to a good friend of mine Jess as she has been waiting over a year for me to get my butt into gear to send this or post it on my blog. I have been meaning to but have been waiting to put a pic up with it but everytime I forget to take a pic after I've cooked it.

Recently another friend has requested for it and I thought, "Right! Let's get it done". I first tasted the most delicious meat sauce that a friend of mine in Sydney used in his lasagne. I can't remember where he got the recipe from but he was kind enough to write it down for me. Although the recipe only calls for cooking it for 45 minutes, I tend to cook it for a minimum of 2 on a low simmer. I find that this really allows the tomatoes to infuse into the sauce and release it's wonderful rich deep red colour.

I would cut out any excess fat from the pancetta (or bacon if you can't find pancetta) as the sauce yields a lot of oil from the butter, oil and whatever fat is in your mince. I also (when I have them) substitute 2 tomaotes for 1 can of diced tomato. I find it gives a fresher flavour.

Ingredients:

60g Butter
1 Onion, finely chopped
2 Cloves garlic, crushed
1 Celery stick, finely chopped
1 Carrot, diced
50g Pancetta diced
500g Minced beef
1 Tbsp Chopped Fresh Oregano (can substitute with dried)
1 Cup Red Wine
2 Cups Beef stock
2 TBSP tomato paste
2 x 400g cans crushed tomatoes


Melt the butter in a large saucepan, add the onion and cook over medium heat for 2-3 minutes or until it starts to soften. Add the garlic, celery and carrot, and cook stirring over low heat for 5 minutes.

Increase the heat to high, add the pancetta, beef and oregano, and cook for 45 minutes or until browned. Use a fork to break up any lumps. Pour in the wine, reduce the heat and simmer for 4-5 minutes, or until it is absorbed. Add the stock, tomato paste and tinned tomatoes, and season well. Cover with a lid and simmer for 90 minutes, stirring occasionally to prevent the sauce from catching on the bottom of the saucepan. Uncover and simmer for another hour, stirring occasionally.

Serve on al dente pasta and sprinkle with grated parmesan.

Enjoy!

Stevie Wonder in Seoul

Stevie Wonder is coming to town! He will be performing on August 10 at the Gymnastics Hall at Olympic Park in southeastern Seoul. Trying to get a ticket? Good luck! The tickets sold our within 3 hours but if you are lucky and you know someone who knows someone...