It's not over yet, but so far, it's been a fab weekend to cap off a fab week. On Friday night, I went running in my neighborhood and along the Han river- approximately 10k, according to my estimations on naver maps. Does it make me a loser that I chose to go running on a Friday night, rather than party it up with friends? Perhaps... But the weather was gorgeous and being around other walkers, runners, and bikers felt pretty awesome. This time, I deviated from my usual course and ran towards to Achasan (Acha Mountain), so there were quite a few hills to conquer. They weren't steep, but they still got my leg muscles and lungs burning good. Once I reached the Han river though, things were flatter and less intense. Before I got back home, I stopped by Harunohee to say hi to Minju, who was kind enough to give me some water to rehydrate. I didn't stay too long though, for fear that I would chase out her other customers with my sweaty stink. ha.
On Saturday, I woke up way earlier than I liked- 5:45am! I actually really wanted to sleep in, but for some reason, that just wasn't happening. So I got myself up, ate breakfast and spent most of the morning painting. I think I need to buy myself an easel soon, cuz I've been propping my huge wood panels on the kitchen counter and painting from there! When I was doing smaller pieces, painting at my desk or dining table was fine, but now that I'm working on larger canvases and panels, things are a bit awkward. Some adjustments must be made...
My mid-morning snack was three juicy plums!
For lunch, I had a big mound of salad, using the 'Lentil Salad' recipe from 'Veganomicon' for reference. Some alterations I made to the recipe were that I didn't include any radishes, but instead added olives, red bell peppers, and green peas.
It was yummy, healthy, flavorful, and surprisingly filling. I've been trying to use up some of items that have been in my pantry for too long, like the lentils and especially the frozen peas. I got those peas from the Foreign Food Mart at Itaewon ages ago, and they are taking up way too much precious freezer real-estate. Anyone got any good green pea recipes?
Then in the afternoon, my friend Mike called me out to Myeongdong for some coffee/tea and people-watching. We also went to a Bizeun Ddeok shop (the same ddeok company as the one at Insadong), where he bought some delectable rice cakes for us to snack on.
This is the 'pumpkin manju'. I specifically asked the lady at the store whether there was egg or dairy in it, and she said 'no,' but I still have my doubts. She didn't seem too knowledgeable... It tasted good, but I think next time, it would be better to stick with the more traditional ddeoks, since they will most definitely be vegan.
Sweet pumpkin filling~
Since we were at Seoul's shopping central, we decided to look around some stores. I have to say, shopping is not my thing, especially clothes or shoe-shopping. I get overwhelmed by all the different items and the crowds of people, and it's just not something I typically enjoy... I think that's why so many of my clothes are hand-me-downs from my sister. Infact, I'm looking forward to my sister coming to visit this Summer, cuz she needs to be my personal stylist and help me get some basic essentials.
However, I was on the lookout for a new pair of shorts, and with Mike's help, I found this pair at Forever21 for about 25,000 won:
They're cute, no? I'm wearing them right now, as I type. :) Hm, is it weird that I'm taking photos of clothes I buy and posting them up online? Don't worry, this won't turn into a fashion blog.
Moving onto today, Sunday~ I was finally able to sleep in a bit- til 8am! I think Saturday's early wake-up time and the madness of Myeongdong eventually got to me cuz I felt pretty worn down by the time I got home yesterday. But today I woke up feeling refreshed and especially excited because I was going to make my very first 'Oats in a Jar'!
For those of you who have been living under a blog-rock, 'Oats in a Jar' is when you pour your morning oatmeal into a near-empty jar of peanut butter, so that the oatmeal picks up every final shmear of nutbutter-goodness stuck on the bottom and sides! Genius. This idea seems to have taken over so many food/health blogs, and I was thrilled to finally get to participate in the fun.
Thou shalt not waste any PB.
After a nice Sunday 5k run and a wee bit of strength training, I was starving for lunch, but didn't have much time before I had to shower and scuttle off to church. So I pulled out this 'Samlip Natural Bread' that I got at Homeplus. As far as I can tell, it's animal-free.
Do you see any animal products in there? Gosh, looking at Korean ingredients lists can be an eye-sore.
I quickly whipped up some eggless-egg salad and made two open-faced sandwiches, which were promptly gobbled up along with some carrot sticks and a black tomato. Here's what went into the eggless-egg salad:
- 1/4 block of tofu, mashed
- 1/2 cucumber, diced
- 1/4 onion, finely diced
- 2 Tbs nooch
- 1 Tbs mustard
- 1 tsp dried basil
- 1/2 tsp minced garlic
- Salt & pepper to taste
It was one of the best lunches I've had in a while. I probably could've used less cucumber cuz they added unnecessary cuke-juice to the mixture, but it still tasted yummy. I just might have this for dinner too.
So that was my weekend in terms of food (and a little fashion). Hope everyone else also had a delicious veggie weekend! See you on Monday~