3 Things I want to do this Independence Day weekend

I want to (1) have a good view of night sky. (2) eat something delicious regardless of its distance. (3) do something spontaneous. I'm currently taking suggestions on facebook. Let the summer begin!!!!

Welcome to My World

Summer has finally arrived. The warm weather finally caught up starting past weekend. I have sudden appreciation for sippilng Starbucks iced coffee in air conditioned office. I think back of summer 2000. I remembered times of random day trips involving border crossing and stuffing 9 Mickey D's hamburgers. Hot-tubbing after days of non stop basketball and tireless night of chattery between friends, full of daring and imaginative topics. I gaze at summer sky and truly appreciate my existence on earth. I pray and thank God for His everlasting presence.

Here comes summer of 2009. I feel different. Air feels different. My mind is overwhelmed and my body is deteriorating by each passing day. I feel bit wiser, not enough to promote myself to next version of me. I guess I'm trying too hard to balance things in life. Time to refresh and rejuvenate. After all, that's what summer's about.

Hello, world!

I am on the intarweb!

Week Zero

I'm trying to get back into my routine where I cook more at home and pack my lunch whenever I can. While I'm doing that, I thought it would be interesting to see how much I spend throughout the week and maybe come out with reasonable budget goal each week. I'll try to add photos, links, and different recipes for your interest. Your comments and ideas are welcome.

This is week 0 of my new challenge and it's the week where I get to experiment on how I want to layout this project. These are some of the dishes that I already cooked over the weekend.

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Garlic Ginger Basil Salmon
http://foodwishes.blogspot.com/2008/10/garlic-ginger-basil-salmon-food.html

Ingredients:
2 center-cut salmon fillet
salt to taste
1 tbsp minced fresh ginger
2 cloves crushed garlic
1/4 cup rice vinegar
2 tbsp brown sugar
hot chili sauce to taste (I used 1/2 tsp)
1 tsp soy sauce
1/4 cup water
2 tbsp chopped basil

// I tried to take out the salmon skin and that was my first mistake. Skin keeps salmon moist and holds meat together. Second mistake is the substitution of brown sugar with plain white sugar. Brown sugar would caramelize the salmon better. I just don't like picking bones out of salmon.

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Meat Merlot
http://foodwishes.blogspot.com/2008/09/budget-beef-merlot-succulent-beef.html

Ingredients:
2 tbsp vegetable oil
2 1/2 lbs beef chuck roast, cut in 2-inch cubes
salt and fresh ground black pepper to taste
1 onion, chopped
1 tbsp butter
2 tbsp flour
2 carrots, cut in 1-inch pieces
2 ribs celery, cut in 1/2-inch pieces
1 bay leaf
4 springs fresh thyme
2 cups merlot, or other red wine
2 cups beef broth

// This meat merlot turned out to be great. I slow cooked this for about 3 hours and the meat came out so tender. Although it does taste bit like ja jjan myun for some odd reason.

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Tofu-Tuna Steak
http://kitchen.naver.com/recipe/93400

1 tofu
1 can of tuna
1/2 onion
1/2 carror
3-4 pepper (chung yang go choo)
3 spoons flour
1 egg
salt
pepper

// This recipe needs some improvement. It lacks ingredient that holds everything together. But it tastes good.

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Mushroom Asparagus Risotto
http://jbih.blogspot.com/2007/01/mushroom-asparagus-risotto.html

Arborio rice aka risotto rice
2 Carrot
1 Onion
1 Celery
4 stalks Asparagus
8 Mushrooms
Fresh Basil
Fresh Parsley
Minced Garlic
Butter
Parmesan Cheese

// This is the recipe I got from Spencer.

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Bool-go-gi (Korean bbq) from Zion Market

Plain old spaghetti with marinara sauce

Thinking.....

I am sure that you noticed, I hardly update this blog. I still do go out and love to try out new places to eat but not so motivated to post on this blog. I much rather visit Elmomonster.blogspot.com and yelp.com for food reviews. I no longer interested in taking food photos. Is this the end of hungerguide?

I am thinking...

Maybe I will come back with new passion.

H