Mr. Pizza: Korea meets LA

I never actually tried Mr. Pizza during my previous visits to Korea, but was invited to celebrate a friend's birthday here in LA not too long ago.  I was very curious to see what this Korean Pizza Hut-like restaurant was all about!  I have actually tried both of their branches in LA: in Koreatown and Little Tokyo.  All the servers were male, about 180cm, exceptionally fashion conscious, and seemingly charming. There were pretty good deals being offered for dinner which definitely served at least twice the amount of people which  I went with each time.

                                        

The menu had quite extensive options for a restaurant called Mr. Pizza, with a selection of appetizers, salads, pastas, and of course, pizzas, which were categorized into classic and specialty types.  The most intriguing options were those in the specialty pizza section, which listed pizzas with potato wedges, corn, crab, shrimp, and seafood combo options among others.

One of the appetizers we ordered were golden bread sticks, which were basically bread sticks stuffed with sweet potato and covered in cheese.  These were quite delicious.

We ordered the most popular specialty pizza which had potato, corn, bacon, tortilla chips, onions, and mayonnaise as toppings.  The crust was a surprise too, which was filled with sweet potato and had a very nice crunchy texture.  Yes, the pizza itself was very heavy, making the entire medium pizza enough to feed 3-4 people.

The meal ended up being a great deal, since we ordered a dinner combo that had a free appetizer and drinks.

The takeaway from my visits is that if you are looking for some hearty pizzas with unique toppings in a cute cafe-like setting, then pay Mr. Pizza a visit.

Thank you, LA.

- Candice

Chocolate Fondant

Chocolate fondant is a fancier version of a brownie which is not quite baked all the way in the middle.  Upon taking the first bite, rich and smooth chocolate oozes out from the middle, adding amazing texture to the mouthful of sweetness.  This is a relatively difficult recipe to master, since the timing must be precise so as to not under or overbake the fondant.  It took a series of attempts in order to come up with the perfect baking time for the specific oven we were using - approximately 4 minutes.
The ingredients are very basic and the steps relatively simple.  First, melt butter and chocolate in a bowl over boiling water.

The chocolate should be smooth, as shown below.  We used semi-sweet chocolate.

Next, butter and flour a muffin tin to ensure that the fondant easily pops out of the pan after baking.

Fill the muffin tin with the batter, prepared by mixing the melted chocolate with the dry ingredients.

After baking! This attempt was overbaked.

After several more tries, we finalized came out with the perfect fondant, with the middle still not completely baked through.

We served it with vanilla ice cream and strawberries.  Delectable and ideal for those with a sweet tooth!

- Candice

Cherry Blossoms (벚꽃) and Shaved Ice (팥빙수)

Recently spring has been slowly unveiling itself in Korea. One of the most celebrated flowers in this season are cherry blossoms (벚꽃). 

 I visited Keimyung University in Daegu, which is regarded as one of the most beautiful campuses in Korea and is commonly used as a background stage for many movies and dramas, including Boys Over Flowers.

Part of the campus uses traditional korean infrastructures like this one.

The weather was very bright and sunny making it easy to see all the flowers in full bloom. It's a very romantic and tranquil area; I really wish there are more places like this in Korea.

After a few hours of touring the campus my friend and I stopped at a nearby coffee shop called Coffee & Smile.

 We ordered Shaved Ice (팥빙수)!

I have one major pet peeve when it comes to shaved ice; I get absolutely irked when someone mixes all the toppings atop the shaved ice into a frothy soggy slush - 

Which is exactly what my friend did, as most Koreans would do. But, I still thoroughly enjoyed my cool dessert amidst the warm spring vibes in the quaint cafe. 

Thank you, Korea.

- Angela

The French Macaron

Oh, elusive French macaron!  What justifies the price of ~$1/bite for this tiny, delicate cookie sandwich?  It is the burst of flavor in every bite from the smooth filling nestled between two airy cookies.  The exciting part is that macarons are available in myriad flavors, from salted caramel to blackberry.  It is commonly said that they are extremely challenging to make yourself at home; however my love for macarons helped me overcome any discouragement from attempting this.

I found a few steps that were crucial in making these macarons perfect:

*Adequately beat the egg whites in order to introduce enough air to make the macarons light in texture

*Be sure to allow the piped batter sit on the cookie sheet for a minimum of 30 minutes, or until properly air-dried (and not sticky).  This will help bring about the "legs" of the macarons.

*Use a non-stick baking sheet, such as a silicone mat to help ease removal of the macarons after baking.  This is especially important since they are so fragile and can break extremely easily.

I was very pleased with my first attempt in making vanilla and orange flavored macarons.  However, when I'm not willing to spend about 4 hours to prepare my own, I am certainly willing to pay the price charged by patisseries for these little bites of happiness.

- Candice

School Lunch (점심) & Mr. Pizza (미스터피자)

Here's today school menu:

Chicken Ginseng Soup (삼계탕)

Radish Kimchi (깍두기)

Fried Dumplings with Spicy Sauce (군만두)

Cooked Spinach (시금치나물)

After 6th period this egg was sitting on top of my desk. They told me it was for Easter; how sweet!

 Met up with my friend at Mr. Pizza and asked him to order for us. He decided to try their new special, The Korean BBQ Pizza with slices of rice cakes and asparagus with a cheese crust.

At first I was confused about how I should feel about this pizza. It looked more like an arts and crafts display than food and it was a real challenge to my senses. After the first few bites I thought, "This is one of the most amazing pizzas I have ever had!" And I wolfed down the remaining slices happily.

We also got access to their salad bar which served a variety of potato and sweet potato salads, fresh cut fruits and pastas.

Thank you, Korea.

- Angela

School Lunch (점심)

Overall, I really enjoy my school lunches. The school cafeteria is one of my favorite places to dine because it offers so much hearty and healthy delicious variety. However, most of my coworkers and students disagree with me and often complain the food is too salty or too bland. 

Here's today's menu:

Korean Egg Omelette with Vegetables and Ham

Pork Bulgogi with Zucchini and Onions

Multi-Grain Rice

Spicy Seafood Soup with Silk Tofu

Thank you, Korea.

- Angela

Princess Cake

You may have encountered this little green cake in Ikea, or perhaps a fine European bakery. What is so appealing about the princess cake? This traditional Swedish cake is unique for its green marzipan layer which encloses several layers of delicate fresh cream, raspberry jam, and soft cake. It is light in texture yet incredibly rich in flavor, with multiple layers of incredibly rich flavor. Its name (prinsesstarta in Swedish) comes from the love of the cake from princesses who were the daughters of Prince Carl, Duke of Vastergotland. This elusive cake does not appear often in your everyday bakery, which means one needs to travel far and wide to obtain one. I decided to remedy this and made own!

The first step is to obtain some marzipan and incorporate green food coloring to give it the signature color. Roll it out as if you were making cookies, and try to make the layer relatively thin while taking care not to rip it.

Prepare the whipped heavy cream filling, adding vanilla extract for more flavor.

After filling the layers, cover the cake with more cream.



Then carefully wrap it with your layer of marzipan.

Dust with powdered sugar and add a raspberry for presentation.

Delectable!

- Candice

Treats at School

In Korea, it's very common for staff members or parents of students to bring in treats to share with the staff. About once to three times a week there will be a little nugget of goodness waiting at my desk. Here are some treats from the past two weeks:

Rice Cake with Caramelized Walnuts (각색편)

I love the gluten-y texture of Korean rice cakes and this is one of my favorite kinds because it has an extra hint of sweetness from the caramelized center.

Juicy and Sweet Organic Tomato

Usually I don't eat whole large tomatoes as a snack but after this I think I will. It's quite refreshing.

Roll Cake layered with Strawberry Jam

The cake was utterly silky and heavier than I expected, like pound cake. Very satisfying.

Chocolate Covered Rice Cake Doughnut Hole

This is like an orgy of all my favorite sweets - chocolate and gluten. Addicting!

Multi-Grain Coffee Cake

The cake was very moist and had a wonderfully buttery and nutty taste.


Wrapped Rice Cake with Red Bean (쌈떡)

The rice cake part was actually a little savory and the red bean inside wasn't that sweet. It caught me off guard but I liked it.

Other common treats that are often passed out include pizzas, yogurt cups, cookies, vitamin drinks, a variety of other kinds of rice cakes, many other kinds of cakes and pastries, fresh fruit such as strawberries, grapes, and oranges, .

Thank you, Korea.

- Angela

Spicy Chicken Stew (찜닭)

Friday night looked something like this...

My good friend got admission into a popular English academy and he wanted to treat me to dinner to say thanks for helping him prepare for the interview. Given the weather conditions, I was craving something spicy and hearty.

Spicy Chicken Stew/ Jjim Dalk (찜닭)

What's in it: Chicken, soy sauce based sauce, potatoes, onions, carrots, red peppers, and thick sweet potato noodles.

The sauce is amazing with white rice.

Afterwards we headed to my favorite bakery and picked up one of my favorite cakes:

Green Tea Cake layered with Blueberry and Pistachio Mousse.

We took this to one of my favorite coffee shops and washed it down with a warm cup of black coffee.

Thank you, Korea.

- Angela