just the little things

breakfast for my champ

I usually eat leftovers for breakfast or maybe an occasional English muffin, if we have any. It doesn't matter what I eat as long as I eat something for breakfast. Lately, I've been buying a lot of fruit because they are on sale and well, it's good as long as I don't have to do too much cutting. [Plus, family is here so I have to stock up on tons of fruit when they come]

One of my favorite breakfasts to make at home is frozen waffles + fruit [ + syrup ]

And to wash it down with some extra pulp Tropicana OJ.

Oh, I found a few matching Corelle mugs to the few plates I still have around. :)

chocolate...

I firmly believe in the theory that chocolate is good for you... 1 piece each and every day. Okay, some days I eat 2 or 3, but I swear, they are little pieces! I'm a dark chocolate lover... I stock up on Dove dark chocolate because it's oh so good. And I love it even more when it's frozen. It doesn't actually freeze, but it's just really cold. [frozen snickers and baby ruth are a whole new topic].

My cousin visited from LA last weekend and she brought the most delectable truffles with her. I should have taken a picture of the packaging, but I couldn't resist opening it up as soon as possible!

I didn't touch them for a few days because I actually forgot about them. My parents are here visiting and my mom has a real sweet tooth... she thinks cake is perfect for breakfast [no arguments here!]. When I offered her a piece of Dove chocolate she laughed and said she wanted to try the ones that my cousin brought! So we each had a piece... delectable... next time, I'm going to have to take small bites to savor the flavor for a bit longer.

We're going to have to eat these pretty fast because it says to eat them within 10 days of breaking the seal!I put the entire box in a tupperware to keep it fresh as long as possible.

**I checked online and there's a location here in Chicago... this can be the perfect thank you gift for a host, bridesmaid, or even for a party favor.

s'more weekend eats...

On Saturday, the weather was psychotic. I'm not joking. It was about 71 when I left the house and then lightning came along with torrential rains. But in the city, it was still fairly warm. Some friends and I went to Kuma's Corner. I forgot my camera... but the other half of my burger awaits. Next time, I hope to split a burger and try their make-your-own mac and cheese. I saw some other patrons enjoying their mac and cheese and it looked delicious. Of course, I forgot my camera, but we were all stuffed from our half burgers. The staff there is a lot of fun and we never had to ask for a refill. It's a bit small so if you plan on going, try an odd time or hope for the best and get there early to wait in line. 

After lunch, we headed back to the burbs and in the span of 30 minutes, it started pouring rain, dropped about 15 degrees, the sun peeked out for a few minutes and then proceeded to stay cold and dreary.

On Sunday, some plans changed and so I made some Korean soup at home for lunch. I'm big on freezing a stockpile of things when I get the chance because I like the quick and easy meal. So I tend to buy a bunch of meat - this time it was boneless short ribs and boiled it for a few hours. Once the soup-base is flavorful enough, I divide the soup into several tupperware containers and freeze until needed. Since the weather stayed cold until early afternoon, this was a stomach-warming dish : perfect for another dreary morning.

dduk-gook: Korean rice cake soup with a fried no-yolk egg + laver + green onions + sesame seeds. You usually eat this on New Year's day to grow a year older... maybe if I eat enough of it, it'll reverse time.

 

Dessert is a must these days... so I made a short stop to a local bakery and picked up some lemon pasteries. This one has to be my favorite there. I can't get enough of it!

On Friday, the weather was scorching hot - my car read over 90 degrees! When the weather gets hot, I want to either eat ice cold watermelon or cold Korean noodles. These noodles, jjohl myun, are my favorite in the summer. I often eat them a few times a week because it's quick and easy and definitely refreshing. I usually buy the bulk supply at the Korean grocery store, separate them per serving, freeze them separately with Press N Seal, and pack them away in a big ziploc bag. This way, I just take out the servings that I need and quickly whip up this dish.

When I checked my fridge, I luckily had eggs, red-leaf lettuce and cucumbers which was enough for me. I normally like to add carrots, some beef, parilla leaves and bean sprouts as well, but this is only if I actually plan my meal in advance and trek it to an asian grocery store to purchase all of the needed ingredients.

The pineapples were so cheap at the grocery store so naturally, I bought 3 of them and they all ripened at the same time. So we've been eating pineapples all week long. These were really refreshing late at night when my hunger pain struck from eating such an early dinner. My creme brulee dishes are the perfect size for a snack. [I snuck some flaming hot cheetos in for a late-late night snack but there's no need for a picture of that!]

boiling eggs...

For some reason, I woke up this morning with a headache [happens once in a while] and randomly thought of my maternal grandmother. She passed away over 8 years ago, but my sister and I always share hearty laughs when we think of how she sang hymns slightly off-key [must be where I get it from] or how she would fart while we all slept in the same room and just laugh it off when we tried to figure out the culprit. She was such a tiny woman but had a tremendous heart that always loved to give to others and divide whatever goods she received to other people near her. Whenever I was little and stayed over at my cousin's [she lived with my cousin], she would constantly cook for us.

But one of my fondest memories is having her boiled eggs. Nothing spectacular, but she would cut them long-ways and leave some salt+pepper to dip them in. *Miss you halmuhni...

And here's to my sister... she always asks me how to make the perfect eggs. A little recipe I picked up in college and never fails me!

1.Place your eggs in the pot with no water.

2. Pour enough water in the pot to cover all eggs. [may need to upgrade to the next pot]

3. Bring your water to a boil and set your timer to 14 min. [don't start the timer yet]
4. Turn the stove off but leave it on the same burner
5. Start your timer and walk away until the timer beeps

6. Cool eggs down with cold water [I like to use an ice bath bc I get impatient]
7. Enjoy your hard boiled eggs.

Julie, I expect you to boil eggs from now on... not that you read this!

Hope everyone has a wonderful weekend!

[image via martha stewart]

mmm...

DSC07339, originally uploaded by justthelittlethings.

Last week, I wanted to take advantage of a coupon for free petite bread at Target. I chose the French baguette. I went before I ate lunch which is probably the worst thing you can do... grocery shop on an empty stomach! While I loaded up my cart, I started to plan out my lunch as soon as I got home.

A few weeks ago, I watched Martha's show and she had a recipe for a quick French sandwich. Take a french baguette and a layer of butter on one piece and then layer on the ham and provolone cheese. I added some grilled onions, some spinach [needed to add some veggies] and a thin layer of spicy brown mustard. It was sooo good. I devoured it with some spicy cheetos a nice tall glass of diet coke! I highly recommend it. :)

diy kimchi

I just had to quickly post about this. I get my regular google reader updates and one of my many reads that I love is via Craftzine. They somehow find all the craft goodies out there and post about them. So I found it strange that they had a post about making kimchi. From what I can tell, it's a bit different than what my mom or aunts/grandma made, but I'm sure it works.

[image via ifreetimes]

I've always wanted to learn. In fact, I've pleaded with my mom to teach me but she thinks it's crazy I want to learn and just tells me to buy it instead because it's so much work. [we were pretty close to actually making it in Korea, but my mom felt like we were wasting all the other batches we received from family so we nixed the idea] I just remember growing up and how it was such a big production with my mom. It took all weekend long. My grandma was the same. But I would eagerly sit by and just watch them make it and sample here and there.

Anyways, here's a post about kimchi from epicurious [love reading this one too].

I'm adding it to my list of to-dos at least once in my life. :)

Happy weekend!

mm....

Met with a fellow vendor and my favorite florist yesterday at Julius Meinl! I love their white tea. I just discovered how good white tea could be... and the best part, it comes with their infamous cookie. 1 is just NOT enough!

yum....

The weather was beautiful in Chicago over the weekend. On Saturday, my girlfriends and I went to eat at Toro in the city. I didn't take any pictures, but it's definitely a place I want to visit again! It was fresh and so filling! The place was constantly busy which is always a good sign.

We walked around the area for a bit and wound up right back near Toro at Molly's Cupcakes. The venue is so cute!

We picked up some cupcakes and vegged at my friend's place a few blocks away. She made us some refreshing iced coffees with the Instant Starbuck's coffee... I think I'm sold!

happy 100th day!

My cousin's baby turned 100 days old the other day... and in the Korean heritage, it's a big celebration! Many years ago, it was a blessing to see a baby make it to 100 days because a lot of babies got sick and if they could make it to 100 days, chances were good that they would live a full life. And now, it's just a fun thing to celebrate [like a little birthday!]

Well she tends to make the cutest meals... she'll make bento boxes for her husband's lunch like these.

And this time, she made a little meal for Evan for his 100 days. [I stole this from her blog]. He can't even eat it... haha...

Happy 100 days, dear Evan! :)