After years and years of spending Christmas in Korea, this year I shall be going home for Christmas. But with that comes a whole host of questions of what I would like for Christmas. We will be spending the day with my family, then heading over to Ireland to spend some time with Niall’s family. Obviously my own friends and family know me well and what I might like but with in-laws it’s really hard not to know what to get. To make things easier, Niall and I decided to make wish lists on Amazon with lots of little things we both liked to help make present buying a lot easier. I have really taken to this making a wish list thing, so much so I thought I would make a fat girls wish list. This is a collection of lovely things I would love to own one day. Obviously Le Creuset pans and Cath Kidston dishes are probably a bit beyond my means at the moment, but there are lots of lovely thing like ingredients and bake-ware that I could afford but never seem to buy. I figured I would share it with all my lovely readers, since it is the season of giving and perhaps some of you are rich, generous or want to buy your favourite food blogger a lovely present (wink,wink). So here is my list of lovely things if you would like to check it out. Happy Christmas shopping everyone! #buymepresentsplease.

Last weekend I ventured down to Sangcheon to enter the medicinal cooking contest. Lured by the cash prizes on offer I entered and got accepted. We boarded a bus on Friday night at midnight and arrived at 4:45am and were told we should be back on the bus by 7am. Not much time to sleep huh? We arrived at the festival in the early morning to find it was outside and in the middle of a thunderstorm. The ground was crazy muddy and I wasn’t looking forward to it at all.

On the sides of the tents there were pictures of all the contestants, everyone else was in a chefs outfit then there is me in my holiday photo looking very inappropriate, oops.

Despite the mud and adverse weather conditions we sat through the opening ceremony and started cooking our dishes. Everything went amazingly and the sun came out. I later found out that we were not just representing ourselves in this international competition , we were representing England too! It was very exciting as I had never represented my country before. It was especially exciting for Niall since he is Irish! Things were going well, my dessert was done and the risotto was nearly finished.  Who knew I had the skills to knock out a cheesecake in a thunderstorm in a muddy field. (I will seriously have to up my game next time we go camping!)  We finished our dishes on time and laid them out, it was then that we realized we had missed the mark somehow. The level of skill and presentation from the other teams was amazing, I had no idea this was what we were coming up against and suffice to say we didn’t win.

Despite the lack of a win, we had a crazy fun time, met lots of lovely people and ate a lot of different foods. Even if the judges weren’t so keen, all the other participants went crazy over my risotto and cheesecake, so I shall share the recipes with you guys anyway.

Ginseng & Mushroom Risotto

Ingredients 

200g of Korean Rice

1-2 litres of chicken stock

1 onion

4 cloves of garlic

50g ginseng

100g of chestnut mushrooms

1 chicken breast

1 cup green tea

50g of dried shiitake mushrooms

25g of butter

100g of freshly shaved parmesan

75ml of cream

1 glass of white wine

1. To make the stock, boil the chicken stock with the dried mushrooms and ginseng for 20 minutes
2.  Chop and fry the mushrooms in butter for 5 minutes and set aside.
3. Chop the onion and garlic and fry off in a little olive oil and butter for five minutes.
4. Add the rice to the pan. and stir for a few minutes until it is translucent.
5. Add one ladle full of the stock to the rice and stir until absorbed.
6. Add another ladle full of stock and stir until absorbed. Repeat this process until the rice has cooked (about 20 minutes)
7. Add the mushrooms to the pan of rice, along with a knob of butter, cream and 50g of parmesan and stir.
8. To cook the chicken breast, boil the green tea and place the chicken above it in a steamer for 20 minutes until cooked.
9. Slice the chicken breast and serve of a bed of risotto and top with more fresh parmesan.

Hello lovely readers, I am sorry if  I have got your hopes up but this post is not food related. It is me related though, which I am sure is the reason you are all so dedicated to reading this blog.  Earlier in the year I had a dream that I had written a book called I want to find Roger. Even through my morning disarray, I realized what a jaunty title for a book this would make and managed to secure it into my mind. A few weeks later I got fired from my job and decided to be very constructive with my final days at work and bashed out this very long short story.

Despite my usual lack of seeing things through, I manage to finish it, get it edited and get a cover made by my very talented boyfriend. I have now had it published on Kindle. It costs 77p, as I was not allowed to publish it for free. However from 4pm today and until 4pm Sunday it is 100% free. So I am asking you to please please download it. Here is the link (UK) or link (for US) Even if you have no intention of reading it, please download it for me. If you do not own a kindle you can still download the kindle app on to your smartphone, iPad or computer and read it that way.  Below is a short excerpt to wet your whistle.

I want to find Roger

By Gemma Jane

Abbey

“You’re fired!” screamed my boss. A little piece of spittle flew out of his mouth

and landed on my cheek. He was such a vile and loathsome man. Short and fat, he

looked as though he had been squashed. He had the face of a frog; small squinty

eyes encased in thick black glasses which just made him look even more foolish.

I noticed he had a stain on his tie from his greasy breakfast. The longer I stood

there the more contempt I had for him. The fact that his spit was now on my face

made my skin crawl, I would never be clean again. I wiped the spit from my cheek

and walked out the door of his office, slamming it behind me for good measure.

Everyone looked up from their desks when they heard the noise. I stalked over to

my desk, picked up my bag and walked out the door, the whispers and murmurs

growing louder as I left.

As I walked outside into the fresh cool air I felt disorientated. I looked at my watch,

it was only 10:55. I didn’t know what the hell I was supposed to do now. I knew

going back home to watch This Morning wasn’t the answer. Nor was a coffee. I

needed something to dull the growing ball of anxiety in my stomach. I walked past

our local, still closed. Probably not a good idea to go there anyway. I kept walking

through the quiet, dirty streets of Soho. I walked aimlessly, not my usual route to

the bus stop. I clearly had some time to kill. What time do pubs even open these

days? I have never really had the penchant for an early morning drink. The times

when my hangover had been in need of a hair of the dog remedy, I had never

surfaced before lunch time.

I was on a street I had never been down before. There was a pub up ahead; The

Black Fox. Just as I approached the doors flew open.

“You’re a bit keen aren’t you?” a gruff voice asked me. I didn’t know what to say.

I just followed him into the dank dark pub, a stale smell filling my nostrils. It was

here that I first met Roger.

That day sticks in my mind. It was a hard day to forget for so many reasons. Maybe

just because it was so unusual – it’s not every day that you get fired is it? It’s also

not every day that you meet someone like Roger. Things changed for me that day,

for better and for worse. I need to retrace my steps a bit. You need to know how I

first met Roger to understand why I need to find him again.

I sat down at the bar. I had never sat at the bar in my life, but it seemed pointless to

sit at a table in an empty pub.

“What’ll you have?” the bar man asked.

“A double brandy,” came my reply. I don’t know where that came from. It wasn’t

my usual vodka tonic. I hadn’t drunk brandy since I was 14 when my best friend

and I had stolen a bottle from my parents’ liquor cabinet. Why was I ordering it

now?

“Medicinal?” the barman asked, interrupting my thoughts.

“What?’ I replied.

“Brandy, its medicinal.” he replied. “You’re as white a sheet, get some bad news did

ya?”

“I just got fired.” I stated. I sipped the brandy. It spread warmth throughout my

body. I sipped some more. I felt the gnawing pain in my stomach subside a little.

“Makes sense.”

“Why the hell would you say that, look like the kind of person who gets fired, do I?”

I asked defensively. I don’t know what had gotten into me today.

“Why else would you be here, all done up for work? If someone had died you

wouldn’t be here would you? You would have somewhere to go.” He said matterof-factly. He was right I didn’t have anywhere to go. The thought sobered me a

little, not what I wanted. I took another gulp of the brandy.

“Same again,” I said.

“Steady on there love, it’s not even 11:30 yet.”

“I’m unemployed!” I retaliated. “I’ll drink as much as I damn well want.” It was

what the jobless did wasn’t it. I could spend my days wandering the streets with a

can of Special Brew in hand, watching Jeremy Kyle and lining up at the dole queue.

You were expected to be drunk weren’t you?

“Anyway this could actually be your lucky day, I might know of a job

going.” “Working here for you?” I asked pensively. No way in hell I was working in

a dump like this.

“God no” he chuckled. “I’m not the boss, I’m just a barman.” Made sense, he didn’t

look like the kind of man that owned a pub in central London. Although he did fit

the bar; looked like he belonged; a kind of run down aura about him. His craggy

face was ageless, he could have been anywhere between late 20′s and 40′s.

“My mate Roger’s looking for an assistant; got an office round the corner. He’ll be

in at lunchtime, you can see him then. And you don’t want to be three sheets to the

wind now do ya? That would be going too far, even for Roger.”

I didn’t even ask what kind of work it was, I had enough on my mind as it was. My

phone bleeped, Suzie’s name came on the screen. I threw the phone back into my

bag. God knows how she was going to react when she heard I had lost my job. I

would worry about that later. Maybe I could get a job with the mysterious Roger.

I drank more steadily after that; switching to my more familiar vodka tonic. My

senses dulled and my problems were forgotten. I just drank. I felt a pang in my

stomach some time later. Not anxiety, something different. Hunger. I looked at the

clock; 2:35.

“I thought you said he was coming in at lunchtime?” I asked Tim the bartender. We

were on a first name basis by now.

“He’ll be here, don’t worry.” He might be, but I won’t be I thought. What the hell

was I doing in a place like this anyway? I needed to go home and get something

to eat, I shouldn’t be here. I gulped down the last of my vodka, picked up my bag

and went to the ladies. As I washed my hands I looked in the mirror. I looked like

shit. My long brown hair was limp and greasy. It was due a wash but I had run out

of shampoo a few days ago and had forgotten to get more. I made a mental note

to stop into Boots on the way home. My face had seen better days too. My already

pale skin looked dull and washed out. The drinks had done me no favours. My red

tinged eyes had large black bags underneath them. The concealer I had put on

this morning had failed to stay put. I fished around in my bag for some makeup.

I never brought it to work on week days though. I found a lipstick missing its lid,

the dirt and dust from my bag stuck to the stick. I rubbed as much off as I could

with my finger and put some on. A bit of colour, there, I looked minutely better. No

one looked good under these florescent lights anyway. I’d get a bit of shopping, get

home and have a nice long bath. Maybe everything would be okay after all.

“Here she is,” Tim exclaimed. I stood in shock as the ladies door closed behind me. I

was in awe. There before me was tallest, most handsome man I had ever seen. Not

handsome in the conventional sense you understand. I didn’t go for that pretty boy

look. He was tall, stocky, and manly. He had a shock of black hair, a stubble ridden

chin, and a slightly crooked nose with piecing green eyes. He was rugged, the kind

of man that only need to look at you to make your knickers drop. This was Roger!

Bonny’s

First stop was Bonny’s Pizzeria and self service bar. Here we tried the kimchi cult pizza. I have always given this one a miss in the past ,as I am not really a fan of kimchi. However I thought it would be churlish not to try it and it was actually quite tasty. I much prefer kimchi when it is hot, rather than cold, throw in some cheese and a pizza dough and it’s actually pretty damn manageable. Our drinks special here was the Russian beer, an awesome accompaniment to kimchi  Not bad at all.

Indigos

Or second stop of the day was Indigo’s. Here we got to try my absolute favourite sandwich, the basil pesto chicken. It was totally amazing and as yummy as always. Glad a few others got to try it too. We also tried the tomato soup. A lovely homemade one, which would just be ideal on a cold night.

Phillies

If we were to eat anything here, it has to be the Philly cheese steak. Although more bulgogi than steak ,it was still rather tasty. We also tried the vegetable platter with ranch dip that went down a storm. Even with the hard to please Jonah and Katy. Who said kids don’t like vegetables?

Ditori

Last stop on this week’s tour was Ditori. Here we tried Korean potato pancakes. They were wonderfully tasty, and  it was great for me to try something new. We also indulged in their fabulous makgeolli range. Co-leader Joyce recommended the champagne makgeoli, which really does have a resemblance to champagne. Locally made it’s for those that like the finer things in life but cant afford them. We also tried the black bean makgeolli too, which again I was surprised I liked too, the perfect end to the tour.

The Itaewon foodie crawls are a weekly event hosted by Chip’s Maps with a little help from yours truly. If you are interested in attending one of the future foodie crawls, please check out the facebook page for more details and information on how to sign up. Hope to see you at the next one!

Last Saturday I helped lead 10 unsuspecting victims  around Kyungnidan on the Chips Maps foodie crawl. We all met up at Noksapyeong station then trawled around the area and tried to eat as much as humanly possible.

Our first stop was Craftworks Taphouse where we enjoyed chicken pepper poppers with 12 different dips. We all had different favourites, so here are our top picks , peri peri, buffalo, honey mustard and chipotle mayonnaise. I will have to go back to try a few more next time. A Bloody Mary and some chicken later it was time to move on.

Our second stop was Springs Taphouse, another craft beer joint. Although it was a food crawl we did spend a lot of time drinking, as eating can be very thirsty work. At Springs Taphouse we tried the three mushroom pate with cherry tomato and chickpea tapenade. I love this dish so was thrilled to be able to try it again, everyone agreed that it was absolutely delicious.

Third stop was Beer O’ Clock pizza. I had been meaning to eat here for quite some time now, so was very keen to try it out. The pizza crust was thin and crispy just how I like it. I was starting to get pretty full by this point but still managed to eat 2 slices.

Last stop was Maloneys. Here we enjoyed mini sliders. Thank God they were mini as I might not have managed a whole one. The meat was juicy and tasty though, I will be definitely coming back for a full sized one when I have more room.  We even stayed here and had a few more drinks after we were finished.

Everyone on the crawl was tonnes of fun and we all enjoyed a great afternoon. I am already looking forward to next weeks crawl around the world in Itaewon. If you would like to sign up for one of the future crawls, please check out the facebook page for more details.

Chocolate

On Bali island itself, chocolate is quite scarce, although there are a few treats to be found, In all convenience stores they have Malaysian Cadburys. I use to be so particular over my Cadburys telling anyone who would listen that it’s just not the same as the English one, but this was rather good. Has it improved or have I just been in Asia too long? Be sure to stock up on a few bars. Also you can find Kinder Bueno and Kinder Joys everywhere. However It’s at the airport upon departing that things get good, Malteasers, Celebrations, Mars planets and Dime bars are all here! I managed to control myself this year and spent only a mere $36 USD on duty free chocolate this time, half my usual amount.

Crisps

Although you might be disappointed with the lack of chocolate on Bali, the variety of crisps more than makes up for it. They have kettle chips in a variety of flavours and even English Tyrells!!! Also Scottish Mackies and America’s Boulders. I munched my way through about 10 large bags of gourmet crisps this week, I just kept forgetting to take pictures of them. Also worth mentioning are a local brand of salt and vinegar crisps. Not strong in flavour but they had a really great texture. They tasted just like the little crispy bits found at the bottom of a potion of chips with salt and vinegar. They come highly recommended by me.

Supermarket sweep

One of the highlights of my holiday is always visiting a local supermarket to see what can be found at much lower prices. I stocked up lots of Indonesian ingredients like sweet soy sauce, rendang, satay paste, nasi goreng spice mix etc. I also bought vanilla pods and a big bag of saffron for a a mere 700 won. Lastly I got a bag of rigatoni, egg noodles,  and a tin of British Heinz baked beans!

Toiletries 

Yes I know you can’t eat these but I stocked up on everything as it was crazy cheap. We all know how expensive it can be to buy deodorant and brand name shampoos in Korea so I filled my basket.

Restaurants 

We had one particularly fancy meal out at Jemme in Seminyak, which serves gourmet English food. How was I to resist this? They also have an all night 2 for 1 cocktail special which sealed the deal. Niall had a tuna tartar for starter whilst I had a Portobello stuffed mushroom. Both were great.

For the mains Niall had a crusted rack of lamb which was to die for. I had a roast chicken with a trio of gravies and cauliflower cheese with assorted veg. This was was for two people but I couldn’t resist and had one to myself, with a little help from Niall.

Onto the dessert platter, we once again had the special for two. Included was rice pudding, lemon tart, chocolate brownie, vanilla ice cream, citrus panacotta and coffee meringue. Niall was rather full after eating half his own dinner and some of mine so had to bow out on dessert, so I ended up eating most of this by myself. Fat girl likes a challenge though and never shrinks away from a task. The meal was spectacular and well priced at around $100 for the two of us including all our drinks.

Another  favourite restaurant of ours was  Kafe in Ubud. This organic paradise was fantastic. Everything was healthy, and they had plenty of vegetarian, gluten free, and raw dishes on the menu. We went here a few times over the week and tried lots of different things. It’s the kind of place I would love to own one day. Everything is locally sourced or made in house and was truly scrumptious. Star dishes were a feta chicken sandwich on focaccia, cashew chicken stir fry, and a mezze platter.

Cocktails galore are available on Bali. Everywhere you look there are 2 for 1 happy hours on all manner of fabulously flavoured mojitos. I drank them by the bucket load. I also managed to find my favourite cocktail in the world, the Rapaska! At Ku De Ta, the most gorgeous place on Seminyak beach, they serve up premium cocktails whilst you laze on large day beds overlooking the sea whilst watching the sunset. This is also where we got engaged. We washed down all manner of drinks to celebrate including a $50 fish bowl of sangria.

We also indulged in pizza, tacos, samosas, satays, dip platters and various quick bites whilst enjoying our many cocktails. Here are a few of our favourites. Everything on Bali was exceptionally good and I don’t think we had a bad meal the whole time we were there. Competition is so fierce it keeps up the quality. So I would certainly recommend it as a holiday hotspot for fellow foodies.

And just in case you were worried about my complete lack of nutrients this week, here are some of the lovely breakfasts that we had at our hotels.

Last week my lovely friend Miles asked me to help him to learn to cook. To say he is a novice is an understatement. He can’t even tell the difference between a courgette and a carrot. So I decided I would impart him with some of my wisdom and try and help him make a few meals. He is on a diet to help him lose weight, so we prepared some of my skinnier recipes. I only had so much time to give so we decided to spend one night cooking and make meals for the whole week. I have now realized what a wonderful idea this is. Especially for those who find cooking a chore. A few devoted hours on a Sunday and you will have a fridge and freezer full of healthy meals to last you the whole week.  So this week I even decided to have a go myself. It’s really up to you what you want  to make but here are just a few of the different things we made.

5 salads, consisting of lettuce, cucumber, whole cherry tomatoes and sliced red peppers. If you don’t add the dressing and you seal them in airtight containers they should at least last for 5 days. That’s one lunch every day of the week.

12 chicken  burritos for easy dinners. 3 minutes in the microwave and dinner is served. Cut the cheese and sour cream out of my recipe and they are a pretty healthy dinner.

A giant batch of my roast vegetable couscous. You can then just eat it by itself or add it to one those salads.

A batch of gazpacho which could be served as  a meal in itself, or used to top wholemeal pasta and a can of tuna. Tasty and easy, they can also be made in advance and used to top the salads or eaten as a hearty dinner.

A big batch of my Cajun chicken casserole. We portioned it out into individual containers and added brown rice and broccoli to each one. Just like a home-made version of a microwavable meal.

I also had a BBQ to attend at the weekend to which I was bringing a potato salad and a coleslaw. I made twice as much and put the extra into containers in the fridge. That way I had quick sides all ready made for dinners or something fun to add to my salads.

I also marinated a packet of cut up chicken pieces using one of my favourite marinades. Then I can just put a couple of pieces into the oven when I get home and serve with the coleslaw and potato salad and have myself a home-made BBQ for dinner.

There are so  many things you can do to save time, if you do them in one go. Slice your vegetables and put them into separate containers then you can just take a few of each to make a quick and easy stir fry. Or roast those veggies in the oven if you have one. You can also portion out fruit into zip-lock bags in the freezer, ready to use in a quick smoothie for breakfast. The possibilities are endless and a bit of forward planning will definitely help you to stay healthy if you’re on a new Summer diet. So get down to your nearest Daiso and buy yourself as many containers as you can carry. Miles’s shopping for the week cost around 65,000 and that made 28 meals. He had virtually nothing in the way of condiments in his cupboards so if you keep a well stocked pantry it will be even cheaper.

Taipei was not the foodie trip I had imagined it to be, as we spent a large quantity of out time drinking. I did manage to pack in a few culinary delights for you to enjoy which I shall present to you now.

Most of the eating that we did went on at our Hotel. We decided to treat ourselves and stay at the W. It certainly did not disappoint. The food was all spectacular, especially the breakfast buffet. Highlights included the french toast, fried rice, Eggs Benedict, and Caesar salad served in a giant bowl made from Parmesan.

Lazing by the pool can really take it out of you so to keep up our strength we ordered some chicken quesadillas and french fries with truffle mayo’ and a truffle, rocket, and fontina cheese pizza.

Being the lazy trollops we are we also enjoyed various delights from the room service menu, including a Reuben sandwich, a club sandwich and some bircher muesli.

The star of the W show really was the cocktails, I was too drunk to remember all the names so i’ll just show you the pictures instead. They also came served with the best free bar snacks ever, test tubes filled with potato chips and wasabi peas. I dread to think how many of these I consumed. I’m pretty sure it doesn’t account to your daily calorie allowance if they are free though.

You possibly know how I adore the 7-11 . Although no Hong Kong, Taipei 7-11 still had a few favourites within its grasp, inclusing malteasers, mixed berry skittles and Kinder buenos. So not too bad a haul.

I had made plans to visit Din Tai fung whilst there but didn’t get around to it. We still managed to have plenty of soup dumplings though, as there was a handy restaurant in the department store next to the hotel. We tried the usual pork ones, a curry and leek, and a few vegetarian varieties. We came here twice so I am quite sure I managed to get my quota of dim sum.

Sadly our trip ended on a bad note when we managed to lose my bag filled with duty free goodies somewhere between the taxi and the house. Some lucky son of a gun will be feasting upon my Godiva goodies and Mango vodka as we speak. There’s $60 I’ll never see again. Though as they say worse things have happened at sea. All in all it was a great trip and a good time was had by all.

So would you Adam and Eve it, I only went and bloody won the holiday!!! Well actually I didn’t win, I came in second but Stephane so graciously offered  me the prize as well  (I do hope he knows what he’s let himself in for!!!) Thanks to all of my wonderful friends, family and faithful followers for all of your support, I couldn’t have done it without you. I’ll be thinking of whilst I am gorging myself in France. Incidentally if there are any other readers of my blog that would like to offer up their homes and fridges to me I would be more than happy to take you up on them. Now to choose who I shall take as my lucky guest…….. Maybe I shall start a contest of my own to determine who is worthy. Perhaps some kind of baking competition à la The Great British Bake Off! A cake sculpture likeness of me. Points will be given for taste and appearance and originality. I may also be bribed with Christmas presents (especially Marc Jacobs Handbags).

I think we can all agree that I really deserve to win a free holiday. What with my busy life of cooking and eating, no one needs a break more than I. The endless pressure of coming up with new and inspiring recipes is so relentless,  sometimes I am so exhausted I have to take to my sofa and watch hours of reality TV to recuperate from the pressure I am under.

It has been months since my trip to Italy and weeks before I shall take a jaunt to Hong Kong. So when this opportunity to win a free holiday to France presented itself, I felt I had to take part if only for own sanity.

If you would like to help me win said holiday, then you need to visit a wonderful blog called My French Heaven. Then follow the blog, and leave a comment telling him it was me that delivered you to her wonderful page.  It is a truly magnificent blog and is everything mine is not. Beautiful pictures and exquisite recipes than will have you drooling the second your eyes are set upon them.

I know it is asking a lot of you my dear readers, several taps of the mouse and typing a sentence or too. But if you have enjoyed reading my blog or have made at least one of my recipes, I  urge you to do your good deed for the day and help me win a holiday. I could be ever so inspired with a trip to France, so really you will be the ones to benefit.

If I have not convinced you well enough thus far. I have included some pictures of the marvelous recipes the blog contains. If they don’t lure you in, you clearly have a heart and belly made of stone.

Once again visit My French Heaven  and follow his blog, leaving a comment saying you have directed my me (a fat girls food guide).