It's Almost Fall, &c.

It's finally stopped raining every day, the mosquitoes are disappearing, and night time is almost jacket weather. I'm so happy to start using my kitchen again without roasting  myself out of the house. I'm going to make plenty of these....

Skillet baked pita bread. My proudest Korean kitchen accomplishment. Recipe via Smitten Kitchen.

And I'm going to eat lots of my new favorite food, samgyetang.

It's a tiny chicken (it seems even smaller than a cornish game hen) stuffed with rice, a jujube (sort of like a date), ginseng root, a chestnut, and a garlic clove, then poached in a salt-and-peppery broth with green onion until the little chicken is so tender that you can cut it apart with a spoon. It's one of the few Korean dishes that could easily be replicated in the States. I'm still looking for a good recipe.

And just so you know, a garlic mashed potato pancake topped with leftover salmon and an over-medium egg is the breakfast of champions.

Then, after I've stuffed myself silly I'm going to take a long walk in this scarf and boots until I find the perfect place to sit down, drink plenty of hot coffee and red wine (summer was too hot for both - terrible), and start counting down the days until December 3rd - home time.

 via Madewell

via Piperlime

But truthfully, I do - in fact - do more than eat all day and teach English. I just finished reading this:

It was my first time reading Willa Cather and I was only disappointed in the fact that I hadn't read her work before. She's a fantastic and touching storyteller and I'm eager to read more.

And I never get tired of Beirut or this song.

Hong Kong this weekend. Photos in a couple of weeks.