"Merry Christmas & Happy New Year "

"Merry Christmas & Happy New Year "

Dear friends, wishing you a very Merry Christmas and wonder Happy New Year ! May all your dreams for the coming year be fulfilled ~~

亲爱的朋友们，恭祝大家圣诞快乐， 新年愉快 ！ 在这即将来临的新年，祝大家事事如愿 ~~

단팥죽 /（红豆羹/粥）/Red Bean Puree " Patjook"

단팥죽 /（红豆羹/粥）/Red Bean Puree " Patjook"

With my best  wishes for "Happy Winter Solstice" to all of my friends ~~
恭祝大家 “冬至愉快” ~~

Red Bean Puree with glutinous rice balls is served on the winter solstice, we call it "Patjook" in Korean.

每一年的 12月22日是冬至（동지 )，韩国人也在这一天庆祝这节日。华族在这一天搓汤圆，韩国人则在这一天煮红豆羹/粥庆祝冬至。。。。

The Winter Solstice Festival or The Extreme of Winter (Chinese and Japanese: 冬至; Korean: 동지; Vietnamese:Đông chí) (Pinyin: Dōng zhì), (Rōmaji: Tōji), (Romaja:Dongji) is one of the most important festivals celebrated by the Chinese and other East Asians during the dongzhi solar term on or around December 22 when sunshine is weakest and daylight shortest; i.e., on the first day of the dongzhi solar term.
The origins of this festival can be traced back to the yin and yang philosophy of balance and harmony in the cosmos. After this celebration, there will be days with longer daylight hours and therefore an increase in positive energy flowing in. The philosophical significance of this is symbolized by the I Ching hexagram fù (復, "Returning").
Traditionally, the Dongzhi Festival is also a time for the family to get together. One activity that occurs during these get togethers (especially in the southern parts of China and in Chinese communities overseas) is the making and eating of Tangyuan (湯圓, as pronounced in Mandarin Pinyin: Tāng Yuán) or balls of glutinous rice, which symbolize reunion.
In Korea, similar balls of glutinous rice (Korean: 새알심) (English pronunciation:Saealsim), is prepared in a traditional porridge made with sweet red bean (Korean: 팥죽) (English pronunciation:Patjook). Patjook was believed to have a special power and sprayed around houses on winter solstice to repel sinister spirits. This practice was based on a traditional folk tale, in which the ghost of a man that used to hate patjook comes haunting innocent villagers on the winter solstice.
(source : Wikipedia )
Recipe is available at http://kkimchi88.blogspot.kr/…/red-bean-puree-patjook_8653.…

My Latte Art

My latte art is not the best yet, I will keep on learning~~

Latte art is a method of preparing coffee created by pouring steamed milk into a shot of espresso and resulting in a pattern or design on the surface of the resulting latte. It can also be created or embellished by simply "drawing" in the top layer of foam. Latte art is particularly difficult to create consistently, due to the demanding conditions required of both the espresso shot and milk.
There are two main types of latte art: free pouring (pattern created during the pour) and etching (using a tool to create a pattern after the pour). Free pouring is far more common in American cafés, and requires little additional time in preparing a drink.
The two most common forms of poured latte art are a heart shape and the "rosetta" or "rosette"
Etched patterns range from simple geometric shapes to complicated drawings, such as crosshatching, images of animals and flowers, and are generally performed with a coffee stirrer of some sort. Etched latte art typically has a shorter lifespan than free poured latte art as the foam dissolves into the latte more quickly.
(source: wikipedia)