Out & About #521 | Partial January Visuals

​My New Year's Eve had been spent working on an intense project, to the extent where determination to complete the backbreaking task far exceeded any desire to celebrate the arrival of 2019. Said project remains incomplete and undisclosed from the world due to technical limitations (otherwise known as an extremely faulty laptop with diminishing RAM).

I had granted myself a short breather from the venture, which permitted indulging in other interests - namely GOT7 fancams and food adventures.

1) Attempting the Inkigayo Sandwich
Never to be the quickest at picking up trends, news of the Inkigayo Sandwich hadn't quite made its way to my attention until orangecane uploaded her extremely overdue Korea post.

​I was instantly intrigued, for how could I not be? Strawberry jam and egg salad sounded like a fabulous combination. The same cannot be said for cabbage slaw, on the other hand. Regardless, I became invested in the idea and promptly set out the next day in search of ingredients.

Many YouTubers had developed their own rendition on the broadcast station cafeteria special, which I scrutinized down to the very detail before formulating my own recipe.
Potatoes were neglected - for carbs on carbs is just excessive - and a dash of fresh dill was incorporated. Homemade strawberry jam was substituted for the sugary storebought nonsense. Imitation crab meat was wholly forgotten until the slaw filling had been completed and set to chill.

​A large batch had been constructed in preparation for a potluck dinner. The remaining ends of the purchased loaf were then utilized to create a prototype featuring the three fillings. At this point, it was discovered that four slices of bread was absolutely ridiculous, even when pressed together firmly. Consequently, the final version consisted of three slices, with sides bearing strawberry jam and cabbage slaw meeting at one end of the sandwich.

​To be quite frank, the resulting product was a tad odd-tasting. Coleslaw wasn't my cup of tea to begin with, though tried-and-true fillings such as strawberry jam and egg salad hadn't succeeded in raising its ranking either. Food fads have always been a hit or miss though.

​2) A cozy east-meets-west potluck marked the farewell party of a certain foreign comrade. It was here that homemade 쌈 wraps, mushroom-laced 불고기, extra-mild kimchi fried rice, and not-so-mild Mapo tofu (麻婆豆腐) were served to us (in a rather interesting manner, I should add).

The room we dined in lacked a table, so the group resorted to eating off the floor. A candle was lit to set the mood and compensate for inadequate insulation.

(Side story: Amidst setup preparations, someone carelessly dropped my coleslaw on the ground, cracking the container in a manner I hadn't thought possible. Hence, there was no other choice than to wrap up leftovers in a flimsy plastic bag...reminiscent of scraps. Sigh.)

The occasion also marked my first attempt at SoMaek (소맥) - a popular Korean mix of beer and soju - as well as the first intake of soju in my entire lifetime. Both thrilling and terrifying, the experience was one I wouldn't mind repeating at a later point in the future, when I have a ride home secured.

We ended the evening off by dashing out into the streets with a confused, angry middle-aged man questioning our identities. Fun things do happen downtown.

3) Breakfast of Matcha Lattes and Nutella Toast are seen way too frequently on this space.
4) The Roasted Garlic Bun from 7 Baker is probably their best item yet. I ought to have tried their savoury options sooner!

​5) Dr. Belmeur's Daily Repair Moisturizing Lip Balm has since retired, indicating the need for a replacement. In swoops innisfree's Green Tea Lip Balm - transported directly from Seoul!
6) Being the most infrequent flyer (read: an entity exempt from wanderlust) amongst my friends, it isn't uncommon to request small tokens from their travels in the form of kitschy souvenirs.

7) Honey Butter Chips were spotted on sale!!
8) It wouldn't be a visuals round up without CoCo, now would it? orangecane and I worked some tea-pathy on this particular outing.

9) The ahgafandom is wonderful. (Who knew photocard swaps were a thing??) These cross-border trades are saviours for failed group orders.

​10) A proper Matcha-Espresso gradient
11) I've belatedly discovered that beer is cheaper than bubble tea, and further contains the carbonation factor that I enjoy.
12) Scaling Just One Cookbook's recipe for my own Houjicha Shortbread Cookies resulted in excessive cakey-ness. Hmm...back to the drawing - er, recipe - board.

13) CoCo and Chipotle - the perfect late lunch pairing!

​14) On certain days, one may awake feeling restless and eager for hot coffee. Other days, the desire to bake a cheesecake may suddenly overcome the immediate need for breakfast and caffeine.

​Cooking Tree has been one of my go-to baking channels as of late, and it's no surprise given the quality of her productions, the variety of items she creates, and the comprehensiveness of each step.
Considering the countless cookie failures in the past few weeks, orangecane suggested adhering to a recipe without making any substitutions or quantity adjustments to yield better results. This time around, I followed the procedure closely, though did double the ingredient amounts (precisely by the gram).

​The Cotton Cheesecake recipe turned out a little less fluffy than desired, and bore a greater resemblance to Japanese Cheesecake instead. Nonetheless, I was impressed and, more importantly, content with the outcome. The cake was fluffy, cheesy, and - dare I say - comparable to good ol' Uncle.

​Upon removal from the oven, it remained moist (and crumbly) for about thirty minutes. One day of refrigeration later, it had dried out quite a bit, but remained crumbly. The bounce was apparent as original, but I was satisfied. Neither too sweet nor too eggy, the cake hit the spot as an afternoon snack.

​Now, let the job hunt begin once more!