eat – Places And Spaces To Be In

Quarantine Birthday Cake

This past five weeks in quarantine has been a weird time, to say the least.

Now that I’m spending more time at home, I have created the following routine: eat, sleep, social media, movies, repeat. My usual routine of hitting the gym after a workday and making dinner with friends is out the window and has now been replaced by the routine above. I hate it, I love it, I’m adapting with what I have. Happily for my dog, he gets the most walks now compared to my previous normalcy.

I can confidently say, that I’m coming out of quarantine with a couple more pounds on. I find myself more in the kitchen if I’m not in front of my computer. Unfortunately for my sister-in-law, my baking and cooking adventures have increased the temptations to divert her from her diet. She was complaining to her mom over the phone that my baking/cooking fest made the house smell too good.

My latest baking adventure was to create a birthday cake for my friend. I followed A Spicy Perspective’s recipe for the perfect lemon buttermilk cake batter. The key to this perfection (in my opinion) was spending the time to cream the butter and sugar. Don’t rush the process. Let it cream in that stand mixer.

I then threw the batter into two round 6 x 3 inch baking pans that have been lined with parchment paper. The leftover batter was then used to make some cupcakes.

After baking the cakes, I layered it with some raspberry preserves and used Five Heart Home’s recipe for cream cheese frosting. I did throw in some lemon zest to bring in more of that lemony flavor to the lemon cake.

In the end, the cake was fluffy and light. It was a perfect match with the cream cheese frosting and raspberry frosting.

(I apologize for my lack of food styling here. I ran out of time to do so…).

All in all, I felt super accomplished making this for my friend. To clarify: I didn’t get to celebrate my friend’s birthday with him. His sister (who commissioned me to make this cake as a surprise) came by to pick up the goodies and drop off some of the cupcakes with another friend of ours. We then joined everyone in celebration via Zoom. What a time we live in.

For more food adventures, follow me on my IG foodie account: convivial.corner.

Hope you all are staying safe and being creative during this time!

With love,

Arve

A street cat and a cafe…

Found myself back in Seoul. This time around, it’s for work rather than my own leisure. But even though that’s the case, I still try to squeeze in a couple hours of fun into the visit since it does take a 4 hour bus ride to the city from where I’m from.

This time around, Matt – my local tour guide – took me to this cafe called Cafe Laundry. Upon arrival, we were greeted by this lovely tabby. My heart melted. She was so sweet and friendly, I didn’t give a care that I was allergic to cats.She made herself quite at home where we were seated, and I was just enjoying her company. This is what happens to an animal deprived gal.

Once the cat left (to my disappointment), Matt and I got to chatting with the owner of the cafe. The owner, who also happens to be a talented artist, shared with us that this cat is just the neighborhoods friendly cat. She just felt really comfortable to be with us. The cat’s absence allowed me to better observe my surroundings. As I sipped my freshly made grape juice and Matt snaps away photos of his coffee, I noticed that although the place was small, it has a fun side to it.

As I mentioned, the owner is an artist. At first glance, you think she barely decorated her cafe. But it takes a second glance to notice hidden art pieces. You’ll need to visit to see what I’m talking about. I always enjoy being in creative spaces. It makes for great conversations and spending ones time. Plus, the visit was even more special with the cat around.

Breakfast for one

Sabbath morning.

I forced myself to sleep in some more, even though my body woke me up around 6AM – the usual time I would get up during the week. This time around, my body is sore from the workout I had this past week, especially from yesterday’s workout when my friend helped me pump some steel. I made a promise to myself to care better for myself by exercising, sleeping more, and eating better. Especially breakfast.

On the breakfast menu:

Chicken (simmered in doengjang) sandwich
Coffee
Cucumbers

-A

P.S. Because I live alone, I’m still learning how to cook for one. It’s been a challenge, but a good learning experience. For those living alone too, how do you do it?

So I’ve been traveling…

… a lot recently. Even though that’s been the case, I haven’t placed much effort into sharing videos on my YouTube channel of the Places and Spaces I’ve been to. However, I definitely have been consistent about my #happyarvedays challenge on Instagram. (I have just accomplished Day 54! Go check it out!).

Otherwise, here’s a pictorial essay of my recent adventures. I hope this satiates your curiosity for the time being of what I’ve been up to.