Korean Fried Zucchini (Hobak Jun or Jeon)

Korean Fried Zucchini

"A delicious and healthy Korean side dish, Hobak Jun (or Jeon) is easy to prepare and goes well with almost every Korean meal. The zucchini is coated in a thin batter of flour and egg, sauteed on both sides, and served with soy sauce for dipping."

               Prep Time: 5 minutes

              Cook Time: 15 minutes

              Total Time: 20 minutes

               Ingredients:

• 1 medium-large zucchini, sliced into 1/4 inch coins
• 1/2 Cup Flour
• 2 eggs, beaten
• 2 tsp salt
• 1-2 Tbsp vegetable or olive oil (for saute pan)

            Preparation:

1. Distribute 1 tsp salt over zucchini slices.
2. Add remaining 1 tsp salt to beaten egg.
3. Put flour and egg in separate shallow dishes next to stove.
4. Heat lightly greased saute pan to medium heat.
5. Coat zucchini coins first with flour, and then dip and coat with beaten egg and place into pan.
6. Saute zucchini for about 3-4 minutes per side, turning once, or until they are a light golden brown.
7. You can serve with the basic or spicy dipping sauces or nothing at all.

Beat the eggs. I seasoned them with salt and pepper.

I seasoned the flour with salt and pepper, too. 

Cook them a few minutes on each side in a little bit of vegetable or canola oil. 

These cook quickly and they are quite tasty! I dipped mine in some ponzu sauce, because I was short on time to make my own, but you can make your own dipping sauce of your own liking.  Oh, and I seasoned the cooked zucchini with a light sprinkling of sea salt after I removed them from the pan. 

Spicy Dipping Sauce:

A spicy dipping sauce for Korean dumplings, scallion pancakes, and tempura. A twist on the basic soy sauce and vinegar version, this adds a lot or a little spice to your meal.

              Prep Time: 5 minutes

              Cook Time: 5 minutes

              Total Time: 10 minutes

              Ingredients:

• 1/3 cup soy sauce
• 1/3 cup rice wine vinegar
• 1 Tbsp sesame oil
• 1 Tbsp chili pepper flakes (kochukaru)
• 1 Tbsp scallions, thinly sliced
• 1 tsp finely chopped garlic

Korean Fried Zucchini and Spicy Dipping Sauce recipes are courtesy of: http://koreanfood.about.com/

Little Thai Turkey Loaves

Little Thai Turkey Loaves is a great, quick recipe. It's yummy and it's fast because you just pop all the flavorings (cilantro, lemongrass, garlic) into a food processor and let that do all the work for you!  It comes together quickly after you add the coconut milk, peanut sauce, sesame oil and brown rice to the ground turkey.  What I love about this recipe is that it takes advantage of my muffin tin (which has been sadly neglected lately) and puts it to good use!  By putting the turkey mixture in a muffin tin, it cuts the cooking time down to 30-35 minutes! While it bakes in the oven, you can make a vegetable side dish, too! I just whipped up a quick stir fry with zucchini, shredded carrots and bean sprouts. I threw it all in a hot wok, added chopped garlic and some teriyaki sauce and called it a day! This recipe makes about 12 muffin-sized loaves. I ate two for dinner, but could easily eat three! Oh, and the best part is the yummy peanut sauce that you pour on top!

Enjoy!

Ingredients

- 6 medium scallions, trimmed and chunked (include some green tops)

• 1/3 cup packed fresh cilantro sprigs
• 1 (5-inch) stalk lemongrass, cleaned and thickly sliced, or the zest of 1/2 medium lemon, removed in strips with a vegetable peeler
• 2 medium garlic cloves
• 1 pound ground turkey (preferably a 50 to 50 mix of light and darkmeat)
• 1/2 cup instant brown rice (right out of the box)
• 1 (14-ounce) can unsweetened low-fat coconut milk
• 3/4 cup Thai peanut sauce
• 2 teaspoons Asian toasted sesame oil
• 1 tablespoons raw (turbinado) sugar
• 6 fresh cilantro sprigs, optional

Directions

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Coat 6 muffin-pan cups with nonstick cooking spray and set aside.

Pulse the scallions, cilantro, lemongrass, and garlic 8 to 10 times in a food processor fitted with the chopping blade (or in an electric blender) until finely chopped.

Scrape into a large bowl, add the turkey, rice, 1/2 cup each of the coconut milk and peanut sauce, and the sesame oil ad mix thoroughly with your hands.

Pack the turkey mixture into the muffin-pan cups and bake until an instant-read thermometer inserted into the center of a loaf registers 170 degrees F, 30 to 35 minutes.

Meanwhile, make a sauce by whisking the remaining coconut milk with the remaining peanut sauce and the sugar.

To serve, unmold the loaves onto a heated platter and garnish with a sprig of cilantro, if desired. Pass the sauce – either at room temperature or slightly warmed.

Little Thai Turkey Loaves recipe is courtesy of Foodnetwork.

Eastern Conference Champions, "Don't Think Twice, It's Alright"

Eastern Conference Champions' cover of Bob Dylan's "Don't Think Twice, It's Alright" showed up on the last episode of Gossip Girl (season 3), and I was very surprised! Everyone seems to cover Bob Dylan songs and it just makes me wonder if these youngsters watching Gossip Girl even know the original roots of that song!  In any case, it just goes to show that Bob Dylan influences and inspires so many musicians.

Here is Eastern Conference Champions's version of "Don't Think Twice, It's Alright":

Shoesteal Coupon: Extra 20% off for Memorial Day Weeekend

Shoesteal.com is offering 20% off shoes! Use coupon code: STEAL20 at checkout to receive an extra 20% off sitewide for their Memorial Day weekend sale. Shoesteal is the official outlet for shoes.com, which means extra markdowns and more savings! Just don't forget to input the coupon code STEAL20 for an extra 20% off already marked down shoes.

Call for Submissions for "More Voices"

CALL FOR SUBMISSIONS. .."MORE VOICES" To give voice to the rich collection of personal experiences of international adoptees, Yeong & Yeong Book Company has generously agreed to publish a sequel to "Voices from Another Place", an anthology of creative works produced by the first generation of Korean adoptees. 

Holt International is inviting all international adoptees worldwide, born before 01-01-92 to submit stories, essays, poems, vignettes, photographs, photos of multi-dimensional art work, and other creative expressions of their adoption experience. "More Voices" is intended to be inclusive and seeks submissions which represent a broad range of experiences and perspectives on the theme of adoption. Selections will be made by an adoptee editorial committee. For more information, guidelines, and submission form visit www.holtinternation al.org/adopteest oday/morevoices. shtml.

This is an important opportunity to be heard and to share your experiences!  If you know fellow Korean or other international adoptees born before January 1, 1992, pass this information on, please! 


Deadline for submission is September 30, 2010.  

Crocs 15% off Coupon, Plus free economy shipping!

Use this Crocs coupon to take an extra 15% off sitewide via code CROCSFRIENDS15. Plus, economy shipping is currently free.
This code works sitewide with no minimum on regular priced items as well as outlet already reduced up to 60% off.


I don't know how long this coupon is valid, but my friend just told me about it, so I'm guessing it's valid for a while. I just found these new Madeira Crocs on the website and already I'm tempted! They are SO CUTE!!! I love the bubblegum/fuchsia color and the cute little heel! It comes in lots of other colors, too, including black, navy/skyblue, espresso/bubblegum, and gold/espresso. I haven't visited the Crocs website in a while, but now that I have, I see that there are a TON of new styles that have come in for Spring and Summer! Too bad my birthday was two months ago! This would have been on my wish list for sure! My feet always LOVE Crocs because they are so comfortable!

Free Limeade Sparkler Coupon at Taco Bell

Get a free Limeade Sparkler at Taco Bell with this store coupon, valid until 05-25-10 or until 500,000 coupons have been redeemed! Talk about a cap on a promotion! Better hurry in to try one! Taco Bell gives you the choice between cherry or limeade to try. Limit one per person.

I just printed mine out today and will try to redeem it later today if I have time!

Print your Free Limeade Sparkler Coupon at Taco Bell.



Find a Taco Bell near you.

"Remember the Mountain Bed" (Billy Bragg and Wilco)

Started listening to Pandora Radio on the internet and this lovely Billy Bragg and Wilco song came on while I was doing the dishes this morning.  Lately, I haven't been taking advantage of this great internet radio station that basically "guesses" what music you might like based on the bands you input at the beginning. What's great about Pandora Radio is that I get to hear new music or old favorites.  Just thought I'd share this song since I love Wilco. Here's "Remember the Mountain Bed":

25% off Eddie Bauer Coupon ends Sunday May 23, 2010

Enter code 25SUMMER at check out and receive 25% off everything at Eddie Bauer.

* Offer valid on your purchase of Eddie Bauer merchandise at our Eddie Bauer stores, Eddie Bauer Outlet stores, througheddiebauer.com and firstascent.com or at 800.426.8020 when using your Eddie Bauer Friends Card. On-line clearance merchandise not included in this offer. Offer valid through 5/23/10. Does not include and cannot be applied to previous or pending purchases, credit card balance, taxes, shipping/handling or monogramming charges, gift cards or gift boxes. Offer cannot be combined with any other offer. Original coupon required for redemption.

Free Sample of Anti-aging Face Cream eb5

I'm a sucker for freebies, so I signed up to get a free sample of eb5. I don't know how good this cream is, but I'll give it a whirl!

Click here to get a Free Sample of Anti-aging face cream.



With our anti-aging facial cream eb5, start reducing the appearance of fine lines, wrinkles, crows’ feet, feather lips, and dry, aging skin so your face appears smooth, even toned, soft and younger looking. With eb5 your skin will be hydrated, not just with a great facial moisturizer, but with vital skin rejuvenation agents including Vitamins E, B5, C and A that reduce the impact aging has on your skin.

Coldwater Creek Coupon: $30 off $100 purchase

My mom loves Coldwater Creek, so this coupon is for her and anyone else who likes to shop at Coldwater Creek.  Now through May 26, 2010, you can get $30 off a purchase of $100 or more. Just enter the code: AFLA571 at checkout. 


Happy Shopping!


Find a Coldwater Creek Store near you.


Offer is valid through 5/26/10 on your merchandise purchase of $100 or more, exclusive of tax and shipping. Use Offer Code AFLA571. One offer per customer only. Not valid: on previous purchases, for Coldwater Creek gift cards, in Outlet stores or on Spa services. May not be combined with any other Offer Code or discount. In the event of a return or exchange the amount refunded will equal the actual merchandise purchase price paid. No cash value.

Leona Lewis: "Bleeding Love"

Love this song by Leona Lewis, "Bleeding Love."

Super Gymnastics!

This is a great gymnastics video showcasing one of the many talents of our niece, Mackenzie. She is so athletic and so amazing to watch! She qualified to train with Bela Karolyi at a special gymnastics camp--that's how incredibly talented she is!

Chuck E. Cheese's Mother's Day Appreciation Coupons

Chuck E. Cheese's is offering free Mother's Day appreciation coupons, including a special coupon that is good for 20 free tokens at Chuck E. Cheese's! Pretty cute idea.

Have fun!

Happy Mother's Day to all the mothers out there, including my mom!

Print Chuck E. Cheese's Mother's Day appreciation coupons


Find a Chuck E. Cheese's location near you

DSW Shoes Rewards Program

Yesterday, I went to DSW Shoes with my friend.  I wasn't planning on getting anything, I just wanted to look around to see if there were any unbeatable clearance items to try on for fun.

DSW Shoes had a sign for a special promotion where you text a word to their number and they text you back with a coupon code offer.  So, I tried it out just to see what it was all about.

I texted "nushuz" to 78527 and apparently, I got a good text response back! The sales associate told me I got $25.00 in FREE gift certificate money to spend!!  She said that usually it takes spending $1000 at DSW Shoes to earn that $25.00 gift certificate reward, so this was definitely my lucky day! She also said the certificates would be e-mailed to me after I made a purchase and the cashier inputted the code at the register.

Well, you know me, I am always looking for a loop hole and so I found some shoe water proofer spray at the counter for $3.99 and made my small purchase (instead of buying a pair of shoes, which is probably what the promotion was encouraging) in order to get my free $25.00 gift certificates later via e-mail.

Apparently, DSW Shoes no longer has their previous frequent buyer's club card that kept track of how many shoes you purchased and offered a free pair of shoes after buying a stipulated number (something like 20-25 shoes? I can't remember).  I haven't stepped foot in a DSW Shoes in several years, so I was way behind in keeping up with their changing rewards program! But at least I know now.

In any case, I worked my way around that promotion by making a small purchase! There was no minimum purchase required to activate the code at the register, so I just signed up to be a part of the new rewards program and now I am waiting to get my $25.00 gift certificates, so I can go back and pick out a nice pair of designer shoes for less as DSW Shoes! Can't wait! What an unexpected FREEBIE!

I came home and looked up DSW Shoes online and discovered they have a similar promotion online, anyway. If you sign up to be a rewards member, you get 500 bonus points, which is the same "bonus" I got for texting "nushuz" to 78527. But that's just marketing for you! I guess nowadays, market research plays on technology and wants to engage customers in a texting game to get coupon codes in the store immediately to encourage shopping that day. If you sign up online, you get the 500 bonus points just for signing up (no purchase required). But, of course, they don't tell you that in the store! Oh well, I needed some water proofer anyway and now I just have to wait patiently for my $25.00 gift certificates to show up in my inbox.

Sign up for DSW Rewards Program


Locate a DSW Shoes Store near you

Oh, and I just learned that you get a $5.00 gift certificate for your birthday! What a cool birthday freebie treat to look forward to next year! DSW Shoes sells great shoe care products for under $5.00 as well as socks and purses, so I'm bound to find something for $5.00 in there! Can't wait!