Procrastination, Part 237

I'm scheduled to move into my new apartment in Busan this coming Saturday. Of course, in Korea that could mean this Saturday, the following Saturday, or--heck--why not next month? Even though I won't believe my move-in date to be true until I'm actually in the building and holding the key to my new abode in my hands, I suppose I should start packing. I have posters to tear off the wall, clothes to stuff in my bag (note: "bag" is not plural because my wardrobe has been eaten by my washing machine and I have thus been left with little clothing to pack), books and lamps to load into boxes, and food... oh Lord, the food. How does a girl transport the contents of her entire refrigerator from one destination to another? Beyond packing, I have to figure out how to get my driver's license, buy a car, get insurance for said car (and probably tack on health insurance for good measure), and hire a moving truck to take the rest of my junk to the light at the end of my tunnel (Busan). And yes, I must have all of the above done by Saturday (presumably), so, naturally, I'm procrastinating and writing a blog post instead.

One of the hobbies I've acquired during the past couple weeks of procrastinating (I've known about my pending move for far longer than I would care to admit) is cooking. As in, me cooking food. For those of you who know me well, you are probably shocked to read such a statement coming from my fingers. I have openly loathed even the mere thought of cooking for as long as I can remember. When I moved to Nashville after college and could no longer depend on cafeteria food to sustain me, I resorted to buying Lean Cuisine meals. Even then, poking holes in the saran-wrap covered dinners and throwing them in the microwave for the necessary 5 minutes was almost too much "cooking" for me to handle. Anyway, I recently picked up a copy of a popular book (according to Oprah, anyway) called "French Women Don't Get Fat" (I thought it was a shallow, trashy novel I could soak my brain in after work, but was surprised to find it was a cooking/nutrition self-help book) and it inspired me to start cooking my own food. I've been raking through the internet over the past few weeks, trying to find healthy recipes that will actually work in Korea (ingredients that aren't native to Korea are hard to find) and I've found a few that have been working out quite nicely. My favorite recipe by far is a hummus recipe I found, and I was fortunate enough to find tahini when I was in Seoul a few weeks ago. It's so good, in fact, that I decided to post it here, just in case anyone else would care to try it.

Hummus Recipe

Chickpeas: 1 & 3/4 cups, cooked

Sour cream or plain yogurt: 1/2 cup

Water: 1/4 cup

Garlic: 2 or 3 cloves, crushed with salt

Tahini: 1/4 cup

Lemon juice: 1/3 cup

Crushed red pepper: 1 teaspoon (optional)

Directions:

1. Puree ingredients in a blender or food processor

2. Add additional tahini and/or lemon juice if necessary until it suits your taste. The texture should be a little thinner than mashed potatoes.

I also made some tasty chicken chili the other day, but I haven't worked out all the kinks yet, so I shan't be posting it here. Not to mention, I don't own any measuring equipment, so the "how much" in the recipe is a bit of a conundrum.

By the by, if anyone happens to have any recipes that won't befuddle a new cook, feel free to pass them along. I'm feeling quite experimental these days (I have time to kill when I have something to procrastinate over).

Well, ladies and gentlemen, I've procrastinated long enough. I'm going to bed.