An invasion of childhood memories

Oh hi, universe. I'm still here, believe it or not.

Still very much on the Internet, too, silently lurking on other people's blogs while feeling guilty about not updating my own. So here I am! Updating!

Instead of, you know, studying for my cardiopulmonary exam. I make great life choices, guys.

About a week ago there was a Facebook meme where everyone set his/her profile picture to a cartoon from his/her childhood, as a way to raise awareness about child abuse.

This was mine:



Can you tell that I spent my formative years in Asia? I totally impressed myself by remembering all the words to the opening theme song despite not having seen this show since the second grade. It was really cool, and not just a little nostalgic, to be flooded with all those memories.

And then last night my friend Jodi sent me an AMAZING video. Did you know that Josh Groban has a cooking show (of sorts)? The premise to "Groban's Garden" appears to be that kids send in recipes of their own devising, and Mr. Groban makes them on his show.

Yes, this is every bit as hilarious as it sounds.

The first recipe is William's chocolate cake, which is plenty funny, but I think Mr. Groban's sense of humor really shines in the second video:



Guys, the man is snarky. That fact raises him to a whole new level of win, at least in my estimation.

And this show! Who among us hasn't invented a new recipe at least once in our childhood, with or without hilarious results (largely depending on the amount of patience, tolerance, and sense of humor on the part of our parents)?

All this, plus being sick and craving comfort food, prompted my decision to make some 호떡 (romanization: "hoddeok"), which is a Korean snack food popular in the winter.




호떡 (Hoddeok)
Adapted from Maangchi.

You can use pretty much whatever you want for the filling. I made the sweet version, but she also suggests mozzarella cheese for a more savory option. What are your ideas for a tasty filling?



Dough.
1 c. warm water
1 pkg. (2 1/4 tsp.) active dry yeast
2 Tbsp. sugar
1 Tbsp. vegetable oil
a pinch of salt
2 c. flour

In a large bowl, stir together the warm water, yeast, sugar, oil, and salt. Mix in the flour, then cover and let rise until doubled, 1 hr.

Punch down the dough. Cover hands in flour and lightly knead dough, then divide into eight pieces.

Filling.
1/3 c. sugar
1 tsp. cinnamon
1/2 tsp. nutmeg
1/4 c. raisins

In a small bowl, thoroughly mix all ingredients.

Spread around ~1 Tbsp. of vegetable oil in a frying pan, and heat over medium heat. While the pan heats, flatten each piece of dough, spoon in some filling, then fold and pinch the dough over the filling to make a round bun. (If this step is not clear to you, I suggest watching the linked video on Maangchi's site.)

Place each bun on the heated frying pan, seam-side down. After ~30 sec., flip the bun over and flatten with a spatula. Cook another ~30 sec., flip over again. Let cook ~1 min., then remove from pan.

Do this with all eight pieces. Serve while warm.